After the Battle
by Datrandomcat
Summary: What'll happen to the sirens now that they're powerless and unable to sing? What will they do?
1. After the Battle

**Disclaimer: I don't own MLP or any of it's characters.**

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><p>The three girls quickly ran off the stage, and as far away from the school as possible. As they ran, the leader clutched her shattered gem close to her chest. The trio didn't know where they were going, but anywhere was better that here. The sounds of booing. The disgruntled, disapproving stares. It had been too much to bear. So, ever further from the school they fled.<p>

They ran until they came to a dark, lonely alley. They stopped to catch their breath, thankful to be out of that mess. As their heavy breathing slowed, the blue-haired girl leaned against the wall and slid down. She hugged her knees close to her chest as she looked at the other two, a worried and defeated look on her face. The leader opened her palms and stared at the gem shards.

"So close…" She whispered, barely audible. "We were so close…" She closed her eyes, and closed her fist around the gem.

"Ugh, that was so embarrassing! Those stupid Rainbooms! We almost had it! If only Sonata hadn't _ruined_ everything!"

"It wasn't _my_ fault, Aria!" The blue-haired one said in protest, hugging her knees tighter. "I swear!"

"You're the _worst_, Sonata! It _had_ to be you!" Sonata became a bit mad.

"Well, how do you know it wasn't _your_ fault?" Aria gritted her teeth angrily.

"Because you're the worst!"

"How many times are you going to call me that?!"

"When you get it through your thick skull that it's true!"

The leader, who was only a couple feet away from the fight, pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance and aggravation.

"Shut up and stop bickering, you two!" The two immediately paused mid-fight, and looked at their leader. "Look, it doesn't matter who's at fault, here! We're homeless, we have no food, everyone hates us, and we don't have any more power. There are more important matters at hand here than whose fault it is!" Sonata looked down.

"S-sorry, Adagio…" She said. Adagio sighed.

"It's fine. We just have to get off the streets and find some shelter. We can decide what to do in the morning." Sonata stood up, and Aria rolled her eyes.

"And where, exactly, are we going to find shelter? We can't just charm people into letting us use their homes like before."

"Then we'll have to find an abandoned house, or something."

"Where are we going to find an aband-"

"You mean like that one?" Sonata said as she pointed in a direction. The other two looked, and sure enough, there was an old-looking, small, rundown house (if you could even call it that) in the distance. The leader's eyes widened in surprise at the fact that the ditzy siren was the one who discovered it.

"Yeah, that looks good, actually!" Aria rolled her eyes, angry that Sonata had seen it before her.

"Whatever. It might not even be abandoned..." She said in annoyance.

"That may be so, but we won't know for sure until we go over there, and check it out for ourselves." Adagio began walking towards the house. "Come on."

Aria growled and looked at Sonata, sticking her tongue out at her before following close behind their leader. Even though she had already walked away, Sonata stuck her tongue out at Aria, and then ran up behind them, following them to the house.

They didn't know what would happen once they got there, and what they'd do with themselves afterwards, but sleep beckoned the three of them, and they hoped that the place would indeed be abandoned.


	2. The Abandoned House

**Here's chapter 2! Hope you all enjoy!**

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><p>The trio stood in front of the old, worn house. It appeared to have two stories. The wood was old and rotting, and the front door was just barely hanging on its hinges. The roof looked like it could collapse at any moment. But…it was better than the streets. So, the three went up the steps and entered the house. They looked around. It wasn't as dusty as they thought it'd be. And it wasn't too bad either. There was a small kitchen, living room, and dining room. In the living room, there was a small couch that could fit about two people. Three if you didn't believe in personal space.<p>

"Okay, you two. I'll check upstairs. You guys can rest." Adagio said as she began walking towards the stairs. Aria went over to the couch and sat down. Sonata began walking over to the couch as well, but as she did, Aria lied down and spread herself out on the couch, leaving nowhere to sit.

"Hey!" Sonata said angrily.

"What?" Aria asked nonchalantly.

"I wanna sit, too!"

"The floor's right there."

"I don't wanna sit on the floor! Move over!"

"No."

"Move!"

"And what're you gonna do about it?" They heard footsteps, and looked over at the source. Adagio was coming down the stairs.

"Jeez, I can't leave you two alone for a second, can I?" The leader asked. She then crossed her arms and glared at Aria. She huffed and sat upright on the couch, allowing Sonata to sit next to her. "Thank you." Adagio said as her glare was replaced with a sarcastic smile.

"So, what was up there?" Sonata asked curiously. Adagio shrugged.

"Not much, really. Just a couple bedrooms and a bathroom." Aria raised an eyebrow.

"A _couple_ bedrooms?"

"Yes, meaning you two will have to share." A small, cocky grin spread across Adagio's face in amusement when she saw Aria's expression.

"Are you kidding me?! If I have to spend any more time with this idiot, then I d-"

"Then I guess you'll just _have_ to get along." Adagio said, cutting Aria off. "Now, go on. Get to bed. It's late, and we need to rest." Aria scoffed.

"We're not _kids_, Adagio." Aria then glanced over to Sonata. "Well, _I'm_ not, anyways." Adagio growled.

"Go. To. Bed." She said as she looked at Aria with a glare that said 'If you don't go now, I'll make you wish you had.' Aria pretended not to be intimidated and got up.

"Whatever." She said, walking towards the stairs. Sonata got up quickly and ran up behind her, following her up. Adagio sighed.

"Those two are gonna be the death of me…" She muttered before heading upstairs as well.

Aria walked into one of the two bedrooms and plopped down onto the bed in exhaustion. Sonata came in, and was about to lie down as well, when Aria moved in the way.

"I don't think so." She said harshly.

"Then where am I supposed to sleep?!" Sonata asked angrily. Aria yawned.

"Like I said: The floor's right there." Sonata huffed in anger and disbelief, but she didn't feel like fighting with Aria, so she slowly lied herself down on the hard, wooden floor, and curled up in an attempt to keep herself warm.

A couple hours into the night, Sonata's teeth began to chatter, and she curled up tighter. Suddenly, she heard a sigh, and opened her eyes. Without warning, she felt a blanket get thrown on top of her. She was surprised for a second, but then realized what happened.

"Th-thanks…" Sonata muttered tiredly. All she got was a grunt in reply. But that was good enough for her as she wrapped herself in the blanket with a small smile. "Goodnight, Aria."

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><p><strong>Poor, poor Sonata. So, it looks like it <em>is <em>abandoned.**

**Or is it...?**


	3. Not So Abandoned

Sunlight shone through the window, casting rays onto Aria's face. She groaned and opened her eyes, squinting in the light. She slowly sat up and stretched, letting out a yawn. She paused when she heard a light snoring. _Oh, yeah. _She's_ here. _She had completely forgotten about Sonata sleeping on the floor next to the bed. Aria sat herself on the edge of the bed, and looked down at her. Her eyes softened a bit, and she sighed. She got up and knelt down by Sonata, reaching under her and lifting her up bridal style. She was lighter than she thought. She then went and laid her gently on the bed, trying not to wake her up. She grabbed the edge of the blanked and brought it up to Sonata's chin. Sonata mumbled something inaudible, and smiled slightly. Aria half-smiled and walked away, heading out of the room. She went downstairs to find something to do until the others woke up.

Aria sat boredly on the couch, looking around randomly. She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard a rumbling sound. She looked down at her stomach, then looked to the kitchen. This place was old and abandoned, so there shouldn't be any food. And if there were, it'd be rotten and moldy. But…there could be a possibility. She got up and went to the kitchen. She looked through the cupboards and drawers, seeing silverware which were oddly new-looking, but she just shrugged it off. She then turned to the small fridge. She opened it and gasped. It looked like the average inside of a fridge. There were eggs, milk, lunch meat, and more.

And it all looked fresh.

"It thought this place was supposed to be abandoned!" Aria whispered to herself. She closed the fridge, and quickly ran upstairs. She ran into Adagio's room. "Adagio!" She said, roughly shaking the sleeping girl. "Wake up!" Adagio sifted slightly, and mumbled something angrily in her sleep. "Adagio! ADAGIO!" Adagio suddenly shot up, accidentally hitting Aria's head with her own. They both put a hand to their now-aching heads.

"Ugh…Aria, you had better have a _really_ good reason for w-"

"There's food in the fridge!" Aria said in a panic. Adagio paused and looked at the fellow siren.

"So?"

"_So_?! Adagio, if there's food in the fridge, then that means this place is being used!" Adagio thought for a moment, her recently woken brain processing information a bit slower than usual.

"Wait, the food was fresh?"

"Yes!" Adagio's eyes widened.

"Where's Sonata?!"

"Don't worry. She's sleeping in our room." The leader sighed in relief.

"Then let's get out of here while we can." Aria nodded in agreement. Adagio got up and followed Aria out of the room, but then paused.

"Wait, if someone lives here, then where were they last night?"

"Huh. That is a bit eyebrow-raising…" Aria said in slight confusion.

"Oh, well. Better safe than sorry. Go get Sonata and meet me downstairs." Aria nodded and went to her room. Adagio went downstairs, and waited in the living room. She heard a slight sound, almost like footsteps, but she shrugged it off as in being the sound of the other sirens walking around upstairs. But as she listened closer, it sounded like it was on this floor. She raised an eyebrow and listened for the source. She tensed when she heard the sound of a doorknob turning, and she whipped around to face the front door. Her eyes narrowed angrily as she saw a girl with red and yellow hair standing in the doorway with a shocked expression on her face.


	4. Sunset Shimmer

**Chapter 4! I'll try to post chapter 5 tomorrow!**

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><p>Adagio let out an inhuman, animalistic growl when she saw none other than Sunset Shimmer frozen in the doorway.<p>

"I-it's you!" The girl said in a shocked and frightened tone. She then looked past the siren, and her expression became more fearful. Adagio turned her head to see the other two sirens on the stairs. Sonata looked worried, but Aria showed nothing but anger as per usual.

"What're _you_ doing here?!" The moody siren asked. Sunset gulped.

"W-well, I…live here…" Adagio blinked in surprise.

"You do?" Sunset nodded slowly. Aria and Sonata joined Adagio, and stood on either side of her. Suddenly, a thought came to the siren's mind, and a wicked grin spread across her face. "Well, what a relief. I feel much better knowing that _you're_ the one who lives here." Adagio snapped her fingers. "Aria. Sonata. Get her." Sunset let out a gasp when, without a moment's hesitation, Aria launched herself at her. Sonata didn't budge, though. Sunset tried to run, but Aria grabbed her from behind.

"Help!" She yelled, prompting the siren to put a hand over her mouth. That only lasted for a second before she shrieked and pulled away in disgust.

"She _licked_ me!" Aria exclaimed, frantically wiping her hand on her clothes.

"Watch out!" Sonata yelped. And before Aria could get her head back into the fight, Sunset grabbed her shoulders and kneed her in the gut. With a groan, the siren fell to the ground, clutching her stomach. The girl then tried to make another run for it.

"Oh, no you don't…" Adagio muttered before taking off after her. She caught her in no time and, with little effort, wrestled her to the ground. She dragged her back to the house, and brought her inside. "Sonata, get a rope or something." The blue-haired girl nodded and went upstairs. A couple minutes later, she came back down holding a long, thick rope.

"Is this good?" She asked. Adagio rolled her eyes.

"Is it a rope?"

"Uh…yes?"

"Then it's good, genius. Hand it over." Sunset tried struggling out of Adagio's grasp for about the hundredth time as she took the rope from Sonata. Adagio then began tying the squirming girl up, binding her arms to her sides. As she did, Aria walked by, her arms still wrapped around her abdomen, and plopped down onto the couch.

"Thanks for the backup, Sona-duh…" She said in an annoyed tone, more from the fact that she couldn't subdue a single girl on her own. In all honesty, her pride was probably injured more than her gut. Sonata just huffed and went to close the door.

After Sunset was tied up, the three sirens gathered around her.

"Hmm…what to do with you…" Adagio muttered. Sunset growled.

"My friends will come for me! They'll beat you like before!"

"Oh, yeah?" Adagio said with a cocky grin on her face. "And do your friends know you live in a place like this?" Sunset hesitated before replying.

"O-of course they do!" Adagio scoffed.

"Oh, don't lie to me. If they _did_ know, then they'd be awful friends for allowing you to live in this sorry excuse for a building! So, why don't you try answering my question again?" Sunset let out a sigh of defeat.

"No…they don't…" She muttered through gritted teeth.

"Then I guess they don't know where you are, meaning they won't come for you." Adagio chuckled. The tied up girl remained silent, her head hung low, and her bangs covering her eyes. "That's what I thought. Aria, put her in the storage room." Aria raised an eyebrow.

"Storage room?" Adagio nodded and pointed to a door that the other two hadn't seen before. A sadistic smile spread across Aria's face. "Oh-ho-ho, I'm gonna enjoy this…" She said as she got up. Sunset gulped as Aria walked up to her, picked her up, and slung her over her shoulder. The poor girl tried to struggle out of the siren's grasp, but she held her firm. She walked over to the basement door and opened it with her free hand. She then proceeded to throw the girl harshly into the dark, damp room. She smiled as she heard the sound of her body roughly hitting the floor, and she slammed the door, joining the sirens in the living room once again.

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><p><strong>Poor, poor Sunset Shimmer.<strong>

**Being in a cold, empty room with no light and little ability to move must suck.**

**And she's probably got few scrapes from being thrown in there.**

**That sure tops it with a cherry.**


	5. Dusky

**Here's chapter 5! Out like I promised. This one gets a bit in-depth with personalities, and we get to see a side of Aria that we didn't know existed!**

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><p>Sunset didn't know how long she sat there, unmoving, in the dark room. She was scared, cold, hungry, but above all, angry. What right did they have to do this?! She tried to wriggle out of the rope again, but I was too tight. It dug into her skin. She sighed in defeat and went back to sitting still in lonely silence.<p>

That is, until…

Sunset's head shot up when she heard a door being opened. She gasped as light began pouring into the room, allowing her to see again. She was about to curse the hell out of the intruder if it was that damn purple-haired one. But…after the door opened completely, a blue-haired girl stepping into the small room. It wasn't the one she was expecting. The girl walked up to Sunset, holding a large blanket in her hands. She stopped a couple feet away.

"H-hello." She said shyly.

"What do you want?" Sunset spat harshly. Sonata looked slightly hurt.

"W-well, I was just thinking that you must be cold, so…" She held up the blanket in her hands. Sunset raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, you're…being nice to me?" Sonata hesitated before nodding. "Why?"

"Because I'm not like them. They're mean to others. Even to me. I mostly just _follow_ them and what they do. I wouldn't do any of that mean stuff if they didn't." Sonata looked down. "I didn't want to hurt you, and I wish that the others didn't. You seem like a really nice person. To people who are your friends, I mean." Sunset watched as the siren opened up to her, and she half-smiled at her.

"Huh. I know a thing or two about being unappreciated among friends."

"Yeah, it sucks. It's like…you try your best, but no matter what they do, they never change their opinion on you." Sunset looked at the siren in understanding.

"You know, Sonata…you're not so bad." The siren looked at her.

"R-really?" She sighed. "I wish my friends thought the same…" Sunset scoffed.

"Psht, don't listen to them. I'm sure you're a great person to be around." Sonata smiled and, before Sunset could react, threw herself at her in a tight hug. Sunset chuckled a bit, almost forgetting the predicament she was in thanks to this not-so-evil siren.

"Thanks, Sunset." Sonata said, letting go of her new potential friend.

"No problem." She said. The siren then grabbed the blanket she had dropped when she had tackled the girl.

"Here." She said, handing the blanket over to Sunset. The girl frowned and motioned to the rope wrapped around her. "Oh, yeah…" Sonata said, taking the blanket and wrapping it around Sunset. "I wish I could untie you, but the others would be really mad at me, so…" Sunset nodded in understanding.

"It's okay. They can't keep me here _forever_. You should go before they see you."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I don't want you to get in trouble." Sonata nodded.

"Okay. I'll try to sneak back in here tomorrow!" She said excitedly, beginning to leave. "Bye, Sunset Shimmer!" Sunset smiled.

"Bye." And with that, she was left by herself again in the dark, lonely room.

Sonata stepped out of the room with a big smile on her face. Now, all she had to do was sneak back upstairs and-

"So, did you have fun with our little prisoner?" Sonata froze when she heard a voice behind her. She whipped around, and gasped with she saw Adagio leaning against a wall.

"Adagio! I-I just…I was just…"

"I don't want excuses, Sonata." Adagio said, getting off the wall and walking towards the quivering girl. "What did you tell her? Our secrets? Our plans?" Sonata shook her head quickly.

"N-no, we just talked!"

"Oh, is that so?" Adagio then did the unbelievable, and smacked Sonata. Hard. The girl gasped and stepped back, putting a hand to her burning cheek. "What, were you trying to make _friends_ with her?! Maybe you hoped she would _actually like_ you?" Sonata began tearing up. "Well, tough chance. No one could ever like _you_! You're just dead weight!" Adagio raised her hand, about to smack her again. Sonata flinched and closed her eyes. She waited a couple seconds, and...nothing happened. She dared to look, and she gasped when she saw none other than Aria holding Adagio's hand from reaching her.

"You don't _touch_ her!" Aria said angrily. She pushed the leader back, and she stumbled back into a wall. Aria held her harshly against the wall and glared straight into her eyes. A glare that, metaphorically speaking, had Adagio's tail between her legs. Aria let her go, but kept glaring. Adagio pressed herself further against the wall, submitting to the purple-haired siren. With a huff, Aria turned away from her cowering leader, and looked at Sonata. She sighed, a kinder look replacing her anger.

"Let's get to bed, Sonata…" The still-quivering, blue-haired girl nodded and, with a quick, final glance at Adagio, followed Aria up to their room. Adagio slid down the wall, realizing what she did in her own blind rage. She sat on the floor and hugged her knees.

"I'm sorry…" She whispered under her breath.

~o~O~o~

Sonata and Aria went upstairs. Aria went into the room, and lied down on the bed. Sonata went and found a comfortable place on the floor. After a couple minutes, Aria sighed.

"Hey, Sonata?"

"Yeah?" She asked, looking at Aria.

"It...uh…it looks a little cold over there. Wanna…sleep up here, tonight?" She asked, patting the bed. Sonata didn't waste a second, and dashed over to the bed. She didn't think she could take another night on the cold, wooden floor. She got into bed and got under the covers, reveling in the relief of finally being shielded from the night cold. Aria chuckled. "I guess that's a 'yes.'" Sonata nodded quickly with a big smile on her face.

They lied there for a while. Aria was half asleep, but Sonata was wide awake, thinking. She wondered why Aria had helped her. She honestly thought that, if anything, Aria would have joined in with Adagio. She thought Aria hated her. Why did she help her? Why was she finally letting her sleep on the bed instead of on the floor like an animal? It wasn't like her, and it confused the hell out of Sonata. So, she decided to find the answer to these questions first-hand.

"Aria?"

"Hm?"

"Why'd you help me back there with Adagio?"

"Go to sleep, Sonata."

"Tell me." Aria sighed.

"Look…I don't know, honestly. It's just…when I saw her raise her hand to you, it felt...wrong. I had to do _something_. I mean, sure we bicker and fight all the time, but we _don't_ hurt each other. Not on purpose. I think this whole 'losing the battle' thing has finally gotten to Adagio, and she just snapped. But when I saw Adagio hurt you, in that moment I realized something: We're the only ones like us in this world. We're the only sirens. We're all we have. And if we turn on each other, then we'll have nobody." She paused for a moment, and turned over so she was facing Sonata. "And not only that, but I care about you more than you think." She said, reaching out and playfully ruffling Sonata's bangs. The blue-haired girl giggled, fixing her hair back.

"Thanks, Aria…" She said. Aria smiled with genuine happiness for probably the first time since the battle.

"No problem, Dusky." Sonata giggled again as Aria used the nickname that Aria had given her years ago, and hadn't used since they were banished from Equestria.

"Good night, Aria." Sonata said with a yawn.

"Goodnight."

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><p><strong>Hey, I just wanted to tell you guys just <em>how much<em> every kind review means! You guys are _so_ awesome. Thanks!**


	6. An Understanding

**Hey, guys! Hope you enjoy chapter 6! There's gonna be some in-depth stuff with Adagio in this one.**

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><p>The next morning, Aria woke up with a yawn and a stretch. Well, at least she <em>tried<em> to stretch. She couldn't move one of her arms. She looked over curiously to see Sonata snuggled into her side for warmth, and clinging tightly to her arm. She smirked a bit and put an arm around her, drawing her closer. She didn't know why, but it's like she saw Sonata in a new light.

She had honestly always thought of Sonata as their…pet to say in the least. Hence why she always treated her like one. But when she saw what Adagio was doing, this weird feeling formulated inside of her, and she suddenly felt an instinct of protection. She didn't understand it. That's also when she realized that Sonata and Adagio were her family, though not by blood. But they were family nonetheless. She realized how important they were to her. How important Sonata was to her. How it took so long for her to see this, she had no idea. But she saw it now, and she was willing to keep it.

She lied there for a while. Thinking, contemplating, lost in her own thoughts. That was, until, a certain somebody began to wake up. Sonata began moving, and her eyes opened slightly. She noticed that Aria was right there, and she blinked in surprise, but she didn't back up or move away.

"Good morning." Aria said slightly monotonously.

"Morning, Ari." Sonata said with a yawn. "Wanna go downstairs?" Aria looked at her with a slightly worried expression.

"I would, but I don't know how Adagio will act when she sees you. Or even me."

"But you don't have to be worried. You gave her the glare. You were showing dominance, and she submitted. That means you're the boss of her, now." Aria shook her head.

"That may be so. I don't want to be leader. Well, maybe a bit, but Adagio's our leader, and I don't want anything to change that. I mean, we probably wouldn't have gotten as far as we have if it weren't for her leadership. I just didn't want her to hurt you, and my instincts kinda… took over."

"Ooooh…" Sonata said in understanding. "Well, we'll have to go down sometime." Aria nodded.

"I know, b-" She paused mid-sentence, and her eyes widened.

"What is it?" Sonata asked in confusion. But then she realized what had stopped Aria. A wonderful smell hit her nose, and her eyes widened as well. It smelled like eggs, and something else they couldn't identify. That's when the two realized that they hadn't eating in a while. Sonata's stomach growled, and in less than a second, they were out of bed and racing down the stairs. They stopped in the doorway, and they were surprised when they saw none other than Adagio in the kitchen. She was at the stove, making eggs and…bacon!

"Adagio?!" Aria said in shock. Adagio turned to face us. She looked tired.

"Oh, h-hey guys…" She said.

"What're you doing?" The moody siren inquired.

"Oh, w-well I just thought that you two would be hungry, so…I'm making some breakfast…" She said. Her voice was a bit quieter than usual.

"A-adagio? Are…you okay?" The blue-haired girl asked. Adagio nodded slowly, putting her attention back to the food.

"Yeah, but I should probably be asking you that. How're you feeling after what transpired yesterday?" Sonata looked to Aria in confusion on Adagio's new, strange behavior, but she just shrugged.

"Uh, I'm okay."

"Good. I just wanted to…apologize. I just don't know what came over me." Aria gave a worried glance at Adagio.

"Sonata." Aria said. "Finish up breakfast. I'm going to have a little chat with Adagio." The girl nodded and went to take over the cooking. Sonata may not be the brightest, but she does have a thing for cooking. Aria went over to their leader and put an arm around her, leading her to the couch. They sat down, and Adagio looked down. Aria had never seen her in such a state before. "Okay, Dagi. What's wrong?" She stayed silent. "Adagio?" The leader sighed and looked up at Aria.

"Aria, I'm so sorry."

"For what?"

"For what happened last night. I don't know what happened, but I suddenly just felt so angry, and I didn't know why. And the way you dealt with me…it made me realize something. I realized that you'd make a better leader. I'm think of leaving…" Aria gasped.

"What?!"

"Yeah. I realized that you'd be a better fit for leading, and for taking care of Sonata. You saw how I was with her. What if that happens again, and it not as simple as just slapping her?" Aria smiled at her.

"Adagio, that's what I'm here for. That's my role. You see? _You're_ the leader. My job is to make sure you don't take anything too far. We each have a role, and yours always was, and always will be, our leader. It's been like that since the beginning, and I don't want anything to change."

"But I thought you always wanting to be leader. You always wanted to take the lead."

"Yes, but that was before. I don't want that anymore. You're the leader, Adagio." The girl sighed and nodded.

"Well, if you still want me to be leader, then so be it. I'll just have to do a better job." Adagio flashed her a half-smile, which Aria returned.

"BREAKFAST'S READY!" Sonata said, unnecessarily loud. Now at an understanding and agreement, the two got off the couch, and went to enjoy breakfast with each other _leisurely_ for the first time in forever.

While they were eating, though, the other two didn't notice the blue-haired siren hiding some of the food so she could secretly take it to a certain new friend of hers.

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><p><strong>To clarify, that little 'glare' thing Aria did was an attempt to gain dominance over Adagio, but not permanently, as explained. She just wanted to make sure Adagio would listen to her for that moment. Next chapter, we'll get a glimpse of how Aria's feeling about this whole situation, and everything that's happened so far.<strong>


	7. Home

**This is my favorite chapter by far, and will probably be my favorite for the rest of the story :3**

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><p>Five girls sat in a bedroom, talking to one another. They were all discussing the same topic: Where was Sunset Shimmer? They frantically threw ideas, worries, what ifs, and confused comments at each other.<p>

"Well, ah reckon she could just be sick."

"But she was fine just a couple days ago!" Rarity said in disbelief.

"True, but ah mean...it's not _impossible_." Applejack reasoned.

"But...what if something _awful_ happened to her...?" A soft voice chimed in.

"We cain't afford ta think like that, Fluttershy. Ah'm sure there's a completely reasonable explanation fer her absence the last couple days."

"Look, we're getting nowhere with all this chattering about it. I say tomorrow, after school, we look for her if she's not there."

"Ah'd agree with ya, Rainbow, but...how would we know where ta look?" Rainbow Dash shrugged.

"We can just look and ask around."

"But we don't know how far ta look."

"Eh, we'll just wing it. I mean, it's better than sitting back, doing nothing, and waiting for things to resolve themselves."

"I agree with Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie Pie said a bit louder than necessary. Applejack yawned before speaking.

"Yeah, fine. Me too." The other two agreed as well, and a sudden wave of drowsiness washed over the five friends.

"Well, ah'm beat. I think ah'm gonna hit the hay." The others agreed, and Pinkie went to turn off the light.

"'Night, ev'rybody."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight..."

"Goodnight everyone!"

"'Night."

~o~O~o~

Sonata had been sleeping peacefully in bed when she heard a strange sound. Her eyes snapped open, and she slowly sat up straight in the bed. She looked around, and noticed that Aria wasn't in the room. Then, suddenly, she heard the noise again. She couldn't identify it. She got up and out of bed, and began tiptoeing out of the room. She listened again, trying to find the source. It sounded like...it was coming from...above her? But she was on the second floor! That's when she noticed something hanging from the ceiling. It was too dark to tell what it was. Out of curiosity, she grabbed it and pulled. She let out a squeak of surprise when a section of the ceiling fell open, and a ladder-like thing slid down, producing a lot of noise. Surprisingly, no one had heard.

The sound became slightly louder and clearer, and boy did it sound awful. She climbed up the ladder, and realized that it lead to an attic. She got to the top of the ladder and looked around the old, dusty place. Her eyes wandered around the room until they landed on a single window. And sitting outside the open window, on that little section of roof, was Aria hugging her knees close to her. Sonata took a couple steps towards the window, confusion gripping her. What was Aria doing? She walked until she stopped dead in her tracks. The sound made itself known again, and she realized it was coming from the purple-haired siren.

Aria was attempting to sing. Any normal human would've covered their ears from the piercing, off-key sounds that were escaping the siren's mouth. But Sonata didn't. It didn't sound like incoherent wails and shrieks. To her, it sounded like sadness and longing. It was not the sound, but the voice behind it that gripped Sonata's heart. It sounded beautiful. The siren then brought herself to move closer. Before she knew it, she was climbing out the window and sitting next to Aria. The moody siren jumped when she noticed.

"A...wha..._Sonata_?! W-what're you doing up here?!" Sonata looked at her.

"Aria, what's wrong? You sounded sad..." Aria blinked, then turned away and went back to hugging her knees.

"It...it's nothing..." She said with a sigh. Sonata moved in close to her.

"C'mon, you can tell me. Please?" Aria signed again, not able to hold back her bottle up feelings anymore.

"Well, you see...ever since we lost the battle, things have been...crazy to say in the least. I hate the Rainbooms for what they did to us. Why can't things ever go _our_ way?" She rested her head on her arms that lied on top of her pulled-up knees. "And I just...I often think of how things used to be back then. How happy and carefree we were..." She paused for a moment, and her eyes began to water. "If Starswirl hadn't...if we had just..." She sighed and looked up at the sky, the moonlight illuminating her saddened face. "I just...wanna go _home_..." Sonata listened intently to Aria's words, nodding in understanding. Aria then hid her face in her arms, and Sonata could tell that she was crying. She smiled slightly, and put a hand on Aria's shoulder.

"It'll be okay, Ari." Aria lifted her head slightly to look at Sonata. "We may never be able to find a way back, but home doesn't have to be a _place_. Home is whatever you hold closest to your heart. Just like how you and Adagio are my home. I know this because home is where you feel safe, and I feel safe with you guys. You two are really important to me." Aria cracked a smiled, and lifted her head a bit more. She then took one of her hands, and put it over Sonatas, which was still on her shoulder in a comforting manner.

"Thanks, Dusky." Aria said sincerely. Sonata smiled brightly.

"Happy to help."

A few hours passed, and the two remained on the roof. For the first hour, they talked, reminisced, and laughed together. Then, Sonata had become tired, and she rested her head on Aria's shoulder. She had complained about being cold since they were sitting outside, and Aria wrapped her arms around her shivering friend. In just a matter of minutes, Sonata fell asleep, slumping in Aria's arms. The siren sighed, and positioned Sonata differently that would be more comfortable for both of them. She laid her down so that the upper half of Sonata's body was on her lap, and her arm was cradling Sonata's head. With Sonata asleep, she was thankfully able to think about some things. She thought about what her friend had said. 'Home is whatever you hold closest to your heart.' Aria thought about it. And as she did, she looked down to Sonata's peaceful, sleeping form, and her eyes widened in unexpected realization. She smiled slightly, and her eyes softened as she came to a conclusion...

Sonata. It was Sonata all along. Sonata was her home...


	8. Looking For Sunset

**Sorry I took so long to update. Had a bit of writer's block. But here's chapter 8, finally! Enjoy!**

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><p>Adagio sat up sleepily as morning rays poured through her window. She yawned and got out of bed. She opened the door to her room and almost jumped in surprise when she saw a ladder protruding from the ceiling. 'That wasn't there before…' She raised an eyebrow and went to the base of the ladder. She had not been aware that there was another story to this place. She began climbing up, wondering why it was open in the first place. She got to the top and looked around. Her eyes were immediately caught by the only thing with color in the worn attic. Outside the window, she saw what looked like Aria. She slowly made her way over to the dusty window, and saw that Sonata was with her. The leader smirked when she saw they're position. Sonata was lying on Aria's lap, and Aria, who was slightly slumped over, had her arms wrapped around her. She had always thought that the two would <em>never<em> get along.

She enjoyed the sight one last time before loudly clearing her throat, causing Aria to bolt upright and look around wildly until her eyes landed on Adagio, whose smirk widened.

"Well, well, well…what do we have here?" Aria gained a feared expression and roughly pushed Sonata off of her, waking the poor, shocked girl up. Adagio laughed. "And here I thought you hated each other." Aria scoffed and crossed her arms, looking away from the smirking Adagio, and the _very_ confused Sonata.

"I-I don't like her! She's the _worst_." She had too much pride to admit that she'd gone soft. Adagio put a hand on her hip, eyebrow raised.

"Uh-huh." She said skeptically. "Prove it." Aria's eyes widened, and she looked at Adagio, then at Sonata. She shakily raised her fist, and Sonata shielded herself defensively. But what came surprised Sonata. Instead of receiving a full-on punch, she felt Aria punch her arm with the force of a toddler. Sonata unshielded herself and looked at Aria in confusion. Aria winked at her.

"I hate you, Sonata!" Aria said a bit too overdramatically, and less hateful than it should've sounded. Sonata just stared blankly into space for a second before finally catching on, and looking at Aria in fake anger.

"I hate you, too!" She said a bit more convincingly, but with even less anger than Aria had used. They began throwing empty, hurtful comments at each other. Adagio just stood there, eyebrow still raised, watching the sad scene before her. The only thought that was going through her head was 'really?' She cleared her throat loudly once again, causing the two to stop. They looked at her.

"Okay, I don't really need much more proof than this. But it's okay. This is what I wanted. For you two to get along." Adagio paused, looking at Aria's annoyed expression.

"We're not getting along!" Adagio rolled her eyes.

"You don't have to hide it, Aria. I saw you. Now, are you two going to come downstairs so you can help me decide what we're going to do with ourselves?" With a huff, Aria nodded. "Good." Adagio said before turning around. But before she walked away, she smirked and said, "And by the way, you two look cute together..." And with that, she walked away, leaving Aria with a shocked expression and a third degree blush, and Sonata with a blank look.

~o~O~o~

Five girls were walking around town, asking around if anyone had seen a red and yellow haired girl. So far, no luck. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were checking one side of town, and Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity were checking the other side. Little did they know that the poor girl was being held not too far away. They had passed the old house multiple times. But…why would Sunset live in a place like that? So, they would skip it and move on.

While they were walking, Rainbow Dash groaned in aggravation and sat on the curb.

"Dang it! Where is she?!" Applejack sat on the curb next to her.

"The real question is: How come we never asked where she lived?"

"Good point…" Rainbow said with a sigh.

"Look, ah'm sure we'll find her. It's not like she moved to a different town, or something."

"True. But we've looked almost everywhere! Where could she be? We've asked everyone we know, we looked over every inch of town, and still no luck!"

"Calm down, Rainbow. We'll find 'er. Come on." Applejack stood up and put her hand out for Rainbow. She hesitantly took her hand, and allowed Applejack to help her up. "That's it. Now, come on." Rainbow sighed.

"Fine." The two walked for a bit. Applejack called Sunset's name repeatedly while Rainbow lagged behind a bit. She would look around from time to time, but that was about it. But then she saw something that made her stop. Her eyes widened, and she quickly grabbed Applejack, putting a hand over her mouth before she could yell Sunset's name again. "Shh." Rainbow said. Applejack grabbed Rainbow's hand and took it away from her mouth.

"What is it, Rainbow?" She asked in a slightly annoyed tone. The rainbow-haired girl narrowed her eyes and pointed at an old house that Applejack remembered passing once or twice. She didn't know what Rainbow was pointing at until she finally saw two figures sitting on the roof. They looked familiar. Suddenly, they began moving, and began crawling back into the house through the window.

"You see them, AJ?" Applejack narrowed her eyes as well and nodded.

"It's two of those sirens…" She said. Rainbow Dash nodded in confirmation. "Nuthin' good can come of this…"

"Yeah, and I bet they have_ something_ to do with Sunset Shimmer's disappearance." Applejack nodded.

"So, what're we gonna do, RD?"

"Where gonna go over there and see what they're up to." Rainbow said angrily as she began walking towards the house. Applejack hesitantly followed, unsure if her friend's plan was as simple as she was making it out to be…

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm...what's gonna happen?<strong>


	9. Plans

**Chapter 9! Hope you all are enjoying the story so far!**

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><p>Rainbow Dash and Applejack went up to the old, rotting house and snuck around the side. They could faintly hear voices coming from the inside. They went to a window and looked in. They were looking into what looked like a living room, and occupying it were three sirens who were talking to one another. The two friends couldn't really hear what they were saying, as the window was closed, but they watched their actions.<p>

A meek-looking blue-haired one, and a tough-looking purple-haired one were nodding as the third one, who they remembered was named Adagio, was pointing at a door and seemingly giving orders. After she was done, the other two sirens walked to the door, and went into the room it led to. A couple seconds passed before they came back out. Applejack and Rainbow Dash gasped. The sirens were dragging a struggling girl behind them. She was tied up. She kicked and yelled. It was Sunset Shimmer! Applejack worriedly glanced over at Rainbow Dash when she heard her let out a low growl.

"I _knew_ it." Rainbow said through gritted teeth. She started to stand up, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. Applejack quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.

"Easy there, Rainbow. We don't wanna git ahead of ourselves." Applejack said sternly.

"So…what? We're just going to sit here while they treat Sunset like that?"

"Ah'm not sayin' that. You just have a tendency ta go headfirst inta situations without thinkin'. Let's just see what they do." With a sigh, Rainbow Dash nodded and continued to watch them through the window. They were gathered around the trembling, tied-up girl, and seemed to be interrogating her. But Sunset, though fearful, seemed defiant.

Rainbow Dash sighed again. She _really_ wished she could hear what was going on. All she could hear was incoherent mumbling. Maybe if she opened the window _just a little_...

"Don't even think about it, Rainbow." Applejack said, looking at her friend with a disapproving glare. Rainbow's eyes widened.

"How did yo-"

"'Cause ah know you, Rainbow." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and went back to boredly watching the scene. Suddenly, the purple-haired one took a step towards Sunset and began shouting angrily. Loud enough for the two friends to hear what she was saying.

"Look, we know you know! Tell us!" She yelled.

"I already told you! I don't know anything! I swear!" Sunset yelled back angrily. Rainbow Dash and Applejack shared a confused glance.

"What're they talking about?" Rainbow asked. Applejack shrugged.

"Yer guess is as good as mine." Suddenly, the voices escalated as the argument intensified between Sunset and the sirens. Then, the purple-haired one seemingly had enough, and kicked the tied-up girl. Sunset fell onto her side with a pained expression. Rainbow Dash stood straight up.

"Okay, that's it! I'm going in!" She said angrily. Applejack grabbed her, trying to hold her back. "Let me go, AJ!" Applejack yanked Rainbow back down forcefully.

"Can you shut yer trap?!" She whispered angrily to her friend. "Are ya tryin' ta get us caught?"

"Are you blind? Did you see what they just did?"

"Ah did, Rainbow. But what're we gonna do against three sirens?"

"We beat 'em down!" Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"And how, exactly, do you plan to do that? Do you even _have_ a plan?" Rainbow Dash scoffed.

"Pfft, who needs plans when you're as awesome as me?" Applejack shook her head.

"Darn it, Rainbow Dash! Yer as thick-headed as a mule. Ya need plans a-" Applejack stopped mid-sentence as an idea came to her mind. "And Ah think Ah might have one…"

"Okay, genius. So, what's your plan?" Applejack thought for a moment.

"Well, Ah reckon if we create some sorta distraction, we could get them away from Sunset long enough for us ta get 'er outta there."

"What kinda distraction?"

"Well, Ah could create some noise on the other side of the house. And while the sirens are busy lookin' fer the source, you could go in and get Sunset." Rainbow Dash nodded.

"I like that plan."

"Good. Now you wait here. When they leave, be as quick as you can. In and out. Got it?" Rainbow Dash nodded again as Applejack began creeping around the side of the house. The rainbow-haired girl looked into the window again, and saw that the sirens were seemingly still trying to get answers for who knows what from Sunset. A few seconds later, she heard a sound similar to when you hit wood against wood. Applejack must be hitting the side of the house with a branch, or something. She noticed the sirens stop what they were doing and look around cautiously. The leader said something to the other two, and they nodded as she began walking out of the room.

"Crap…" Rainbow Dash whispered to herself. "Only _one_ of them left. There's still two more. Darn it, Applejack…" She groaned. Then, suddenly, a mischievous smile crossed Rainbow's face. "Well, since _her_ plan failed, I guess it's time to put _mine_ into action." She said as she stood up straight once more, and began walking towards the front door.

* * *

><p><strong>Uh-oh...<strong>


	10. Escape

**Yay! Chapter 10!**

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><p>Rainbow Dash walked to the front door and entered the house without hesitation. The two remaining sirens noticed her, and Aria tensed. Sunset gasped.<p>

"Rainbow Dash!" She said, surprised.

"Don't worry, Sunset. I'll get you outta here." Aria growled.

"Not if _I_ have anything to do about it!" The siren said, rushing forward at Rainbow. She barreled into her with the force to knock down the biggest brute, but Rainbow was just barely able to stay upright as she dodged half of the blow. Aria then tried to land a punch on Rainbow's face, but Rainbow was quick, and she grabbed her fist in mid-punch. Aria then tried to punch the girl with her other fist, but the same thing happened. With Aria's fist both restrained, Rainbow took a chance and lifted her leg, kicking the siren hard in the stomach. Aria stumbled back, but didn't have much time to recover before Rainbow ran at her, knocking her to the ground. The fight then became a tussle on the floor. They rolled over and over, one trying to gain dominance over the other. They seemed to match each others' strength, but with Aria's abdominal injury, she was at a bit of a disadvantage. She looked over to Sonata in desperation.

"Sonata, help me!" She said. Sonata shifted where she stood uncomfortably. She wanted to help her friend, but she didn't want to hurt Sunset's friend. She stood there, looking between Sunset and the fighting girls. Sunset looked at Sonata worriedly, wondering what she would choose to do. Sonata's mind was reeling, and she was torn between two sides. She could help Aria, but if she hurt Rainbow Dash, then Sunset wouldn't like her. But if she didn't do anything, then Aria would be mad at her like always. But…maybe there was another option. She looked at Sunset, and the rope around her. Maybe they would stop if they had nothing to fight over…

Aria kept trying to get Rainbow off of her. She thought this was ridiculous. Rainbow was a human. A human! Why couldn't she just automatically beat her down?! Well, her specialty wasn't exactly hand to hand combat. She was more used to using her voice instead of actual physical fighting.

Suddenly, she heard a gasp. She looked over, and she saw something unthinkable. She almost had to do a double take. Sonata was untying Sunset Shimmer!

"Sonata, what're you doing?! Are you crazy?!" Sonata ignored her and continued what she was doing. "Sonata!" She said, more angrily. Sonata knew Aria would hate her for this, but she was doing what she thought was best. Rainbow looked over and saw what was happening, and her eyes widened in surprise. Aria took the opportunity, and rolled Rainbow over while she was distracted, pinning her down. Rainbow then got her head back into the fight, and they began tussling again. Unsurprisingly, Rainbow was able to get Aria pinned under her again. Sonata had finished untying Sunset, and the girl stood up straight for the first time in days. She looked at the siren.

"Thanks, Sonata. But…why?" Sonata smiled.

"Because I couldn't just let them hurt you."

"But what about you? I'm pretty sure they won't be happy with you after this." Sonata put on a fake, convincing smile.

"Don't worry about me. They're never happy with me. I'm used to it. Now hurry and get out of here!" She said, shooing the girl to the door. Rainbow Dash got off of Aria quickly, and made a break for the door as well. Aria got up and tried to go after them, but Sonata grabbed her from behind and held her back.

"Let me go, you idiot!"

"No! I won't let you hurt them!" She said. Adagio then ran into the room due to the yelling.

"What happe-" She then saw Sonata holding Aria back for some reason. "What's going on, here?!"

"She let them escape!"

The two girls found Applejack right outside of the house, and they grabbed her and kept running, going to the meeting place that the five friends had planned out. Sunset wasn't thinking about escape, though. She was thinking about what would happen to poor Sonata.

* * *

><p><strong>Aww, what'll happen to Sonata?<strong>


	11. Left Alone

**Most of the people who reviewed for the last chapter were like "What'll happen to Sonata?!" Well, it's time to find out! Enjoy!**

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><p>"<em>WHAT<em>?!" Adagio said angrily. Sonata flinched. Aria looked at Sonata with burning fury. Adagio went up to Sonata and grabbed the front of her shirt. "Do you realize what you just did?! She could've been our ticket out of this awful place!"

"B-but…but…I didn't want anyone to get hurt…" This statement only made Adagio angrier, and she pulled her arm back, hand in a fist. Sonata flinched and used her arms to shield her face, her eyes starting to water. Aria had no intention of helping this time. But as seconds passed, nothing happened. Sonata looked, and Adagio's fist was still raised, and it was quivering. The leader seemed to be mentally at war with herself until finally, her arm dropped, and she let out an exasperated sigh. She let go of Sonata, roughly pushing her back in the process. Adagio then stood there, pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to think of something. Well, they could always…try again. She turned to Aria.

"Come on. Let's go." She said curtly, not even explaining what they were to do. But Aria could tell that Adagio wasn't in the mood to be questioned at the moment, so she began walking to the door with her. Sonata went to follow them, but Adagio stopped and turned towards her. "No, not you." Sonata's eyes widened.

"Wh-what?" She asked in a fearful tone.

"You're not coming with us."

"B-but I can help!"

"I think you've 'helped' enough." Adagio said with a growl. She then paused before speaking again. "Sonata, would you harm one of them if we told you to?" Sonata opened her mouth as if to answer, but then closed it quickly. She stayed silent as she shifted uncomfortably in place. Adagio rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Thought so." She then turned around. But before she walked away, she paused and looked back at Sonata. "Come find us when you find out whose side you're on." She said angrily. And with that, the two sirens walked out of the house, leaving Sonata alone. But not before Aria looked back quickly with a short-lasting look of sympathy. Sonata watched them leave, and tears started streaming down her cheeks.

"B-but…but…I don't wanna be alone…" She muttered, slumping to the ground.

~o~O~o~

Six girls sat on the front steps of the high school, welcoming back Sunset and discussing the fact that the sirens hadn't given up yet, and what they should do. Applejack was currently holding an ice pack to Rainbow's shoulder after giving her a good lecture about how 'not to rush into situations.'

"Well, what if they come for us _all_, now…?" Fluttershy asked.

"Well, I know what _I'd_ do if one of those sirens shows their ugly face around here!" Rainbow said, beginning to punch the air with seemingly great force. Suddenly, she froze mid-punch, and she grabbed her left shoulder with a pained expression. Applejack rolled her eyes and pressed the ice pack against her shoulder once again. Sunset giggled.

"Well, I don't think _that_ will be necessary. I don't think they're as much of a threat as before. Now that they don't have their voices anymore, they seem to be really disorganized and confused. Especially Sonata."

"Who, darling?" Rarity asked.

"Oh, uh…Sonata. She's the blue-haired one."

"Oh. Well, I'm not surprised. She didn't exactly seem to be the brightest." Sunset ignored Rarity's rude statement about Sonata, and continued.

"Well, all I'm saying is that I think that we'll actually have a chance if they _do_ decide to come after us. Sonata doesn't seem to have much aggression towards us, Aria seems to love using aggression but can't really fight that well, but Adagio is fast and strong. She might be the only siren we might have to actually somewhat worry about. So, I say that our chances are pretty good."

While the friends were talking, no one noticed the blue-haired girl watching them from behind the horse statue. She sniffled as she watched them get up and group hug. Then the crazy, pink-haired one said something excitedly, and the others laughed as they began walking away. Sonata sighed and looked back at the house that her friends had left her at. She then looked back at the six friends. '_Should I…?_' she wondered.


	12. Captured

**Wrote this chapter while watching Rainbow Rocks for the 23rd time in three weeks :P I'm addicted...**

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><p>As the two sirens walked, Aria looked back at the house again, which was now in the distance. She looked down and sighed. Adagio was right. She was only holding them back. So then why does this feel so…wrong? She shouldn't care what happens to Sonata. She shouldn't feel bad about leaving her. She shouldn't want to run back and get her.<p>

So then…why did she?

~o~O~o~

Sonata watched nervously as the six friends walked away from the school, and she took a deep breath before stepping out from behind the statue and following them. She walked behind them a great distance, not wanting to be seen by any of them.

She stopped suddenly when she saw them start to go their separate ways. She nervously looked to each one of them until her eyes landed on a red and yellow haired girl. She lightly gasped and began walking slowly in Sunset's direction. She wondered if Sunset would go back to her old house despite what happened. And if she didn't, where would she go? And what wou-

Sonata's thoughts were interrupted when she felt someone grab her from behind. A hand went over her mouth, and an arm went around her abdomen to hold her back. She immediately began struggling, trying to get out of this person's grip. She tried to yell, but the sounds were muffled by the person's hand. She grabbed the hand covering her mouth and tried to pry it away.

"Hey, quit it!" She heard a voice whisper-yell. She recognized that voice. She looked at the hand that she was trying to pry away, and noticed that it was the same color as her own skin. Her eyes widened as she realized who it was, and she became fearful. This was the same person that had been able to subdue Aria. She began struggling again, but she was getting nowhere fast. She felt herself begin to get dragged backwards by the girl, and she tried to yell again. She reached out towards Sunset Shimmer, but she was already too far away. She yelled for Aria and Adagio, though she knew they wouldn't come. Why would they when she was such a screw-up?

And that was her last thought before she felt something hard connect with her head, and the world immediately grew dark around her.

~o~

When she woke up, she found herself sitting against a wall in a room. She opened her eyes all the way and began looking around the room. There was a bed, a dresser, a-

"Well, well, well..." She heard someone say. Her eyes immediately landed on the owner of the voice. It was the rainbow haired girl. She was standing by the door, arms crossed. "You're finally awake." Sonata's eyes widened in fear. She realized that she was tied up. "And, oh, how the tables have turned..."

"Wh-what do you want?" She asked nervously. Rainbow chuckled and began pacing in front of the siren.

"Oh, no no no. It's not what _I_ want. The real question here is what _you_ want." She stopping pacing and stood directly in front of Sonata. "What do you want from us? Why did you capture Sunset Shimmer? What were you asking her?" Sonata gulped nervously but stayed silent. "Well...?" The siren then looked to the ground and sighed.

"W-well...we were just asking her how to get back home..." She muttered. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow.

"To...Equestria?" She asked. The girl nodded. Rainbow's eyebrows furrowed in anger. "And why do you need to go back there? To create more chaos? To feed on the negativity in that world, too?!" She asked angrily. Sonata whimpered a bit. She wished she wasn't so helpless. But without her voice, that's exactly what she was.

Rainbow Dash kept trying to question her, but she refused to speak. Finally, after a good 10 more minutes of getting nowhere, Rainbow gave up and left her room with a slam of her door. Sonata sighed with relief and was finally able to relax. She r_eally_ wished she still had her voice so that she could teach Rainbow a thing or two. She was really mean.

Suddenly, Sonata's eyes widened as a thought came to her head. Her voice! It may not be useful in the same was as before, but it didn't mean that it wasn't still useful. This could be her only chance for escape, though it was a long shot. The siren inhaled deeply, opened her mouth, and let out her loudest shriek. Only...no sound came out. Or so it seemed...

She was indeed letting out sound, but it was at such high frequencies that it was mute to human ears. All around the neighborhood, dogs began to bark. But that wasn't the only thing that heard the high pitched sounds. Not too far from Rainbow's house, the other two sirens were walking when Adagio stopped immediately and put her hands over her ears. Aria stopped as well and looked at her with a confused expression. Then, she heard it. A loud ringing in her ears that sounded similar to wailing shrieks. She wanted to cover her ears, but she was too busy trying to think of why it sounded so...familiar. She then gasped. Sonata!

* * *

><p><strong> Will Aria be willing to help Sonata after what she did?<strong>


	13. Aria To the Rescue?

Aria looked to Adagio, who was still shielding her ears from the painful noise, and wondered if she knew what its source was. But Aria knew it _had _to be Sonata. Nothing else could create such a noise. And nothing else could sound so...annoying. But the biggest thing was that it wasn't just any normal call. It was a cry for help.

~o~O~o~

Sonata let out a final, choked-up shriek as her throat finally gave in, and she broke into a coughing fit. Her throat was raw, and it felt scratchy and hoarse, but it was worth it if it meant that she had a chance for escape. She hoped that Aria and Adagio would have a change of heart and help her. But she knew how likely _that _was.

She waited there for a good twenty minutes until she heard a noise on the other side of the bedroom door. Her eyes widened, and she became excited. She knew they would c-

Suddenly, in walked something that she had hoped she wouldn't have to face alone: Rainbow Dash and all of her friends. They walked in with Rainbow Dash in the lead. And as soon as they saw the tied up siren sitting against the wall, they broke into commotion.

"Now, what it tarnation, Rainbow Dash?!" Applejack asked angrily. "Why in the world did ya feel the need ta capture one? Don't they hate us enough already?!"

"This is absolutely preposterous! Now they'll come after us for sure!" Rarity concluded.

"Now, now, there's no need to go crazy over this." Rainbow tried to reason.

"I-I'm not comfortable with this..." Fluttershy muttered with a worried look towards Sonata.

"Oh, when's the last time you were comfortable with _anything_, Fluttershy?!" Rainbow asked in an angry tone. Applejack then stepped forward and shoved Rainbow angrily, causing the girl to stumble back a couple steps. Sonata noticed that through all the commotion, Sunset stayed silent and kept glancing at her with looks of uncertainty and sympathy

"Hey, now! Don't go gettin' on her case just 'cause _you_ did somethin' _stupid_! As per usual..."

"_Stupid_?! I caught her because I saw her trying to sneak up on Sunset!" Rainbow defended. The room then suddenly became silent as everyone turned their heads towards Sonata. It was awkward for a couple seconds before Sunset spoke up.

"Well, maybe we should hear what _she_ has to say." She suggested. Everyone looked at her like she was crazy as she walked up until she was right in front of the trembling siren. She kneeled down and put on a kind expression.

"Would _you _like to tell me what happened, Sonata?" She asked in a soft voice, almost like how a mother would to comfort a child. The siren nervously looked to the others who were watching with disapproving glares, and couldn't bring herself to speak up. Sunset then smiled in a friendly manner, and spoke again. "It's okay. You can tell us. They won't do anything to you." She said reassuringly. "Now, what were you doing that caused Rainbow Dash to capture you? Was she telling the truth about what happened." Sonata shook her head slowly. "Okay, then what happened?" The siren sighed looked down before finally speaking.

"W-well, I saw you guys in front of the school, and when you started to leave, I decided to follow you since you were the only one who was ever nice to me." She said, shooting a slightly attitude-filled glare at Rainbow Dash. "I _wasn't _sneaking up on her." Rainbow then scoffed.

"Yeah, _right_. Likely story." She said, crossing her arms. "But what I'd like to know is why you were just 'w_atching' _us in the _first place_. Where were the other sirens? Were you SPYING on us for them?" Rainbow interrogated.

"No, I wasn't..." Sonata growled. "I'm not with them anymore. They left me. They don't want me anymore. Which is why I came to you guys..." She said, slightly trailing off at the end.

"And...what? You expected us to welcome you with open arms after what you did?! Heck, how do we even know if you're telling the truth?!" Sunset stood up and lifted a hand to signal Rainbow to stop talking. She then motioned to the door with a tilt of her head. After a bit of hesitation, everyone began filing out of the room one by one. Sonata watched as everyone left, and then they closed the door. After a couple seconds, she heard voices arguing on the other side. She sighed because Sunset was her only hope of getting out of this mess. It was obvious the other sirens weren't coming for h-

Sonata's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a sound aside from the yelling coming from the hallway. She looked to the side of the room opposite the door, and spotted a window. Her eyes widened when she heard the sound again, and it was coming from right outside it. The angle she was sitting at disabled her from seeing much of outside, so she was wondering what the heck could be out there.

Then, suddenly, the window began to slide open, and Sonata became anxious. But all anxiety immediately melted away when she saw none other than Aria Blaze climb in and stand up straight. Sonata was filled with such relief and pure happiness at the fact that Aria didn't abandon her, that she began to tear up. Aria's eyes landed on Sonata, and she quickly walked up to her and knelt down, beginning to untie the rope. And as soon as the ropes were off, Sonata threw herself at the purple-haired siren, and wrapped her arms around her in a crushing bear hug.

"I knew you'd come for me!" She whispered. Aria rolled her eyes and pushed Sonata off of her.

"Yeah, yeah. You're lucky I did. I almost ignored your ear-splitting shrieks." Sonata smiled sheepishly.

They were about to leave when, suddenly, they heard a gasp, and they both turned their heads to the door. The door was open, and all six girls were standing still as statues, staring at the two sirens in shock. The sirens stared at the girls in an equal manner. Sonata guessed that, from the looks on their faces, they had chosen Rainbow's side over Sunset's. Great...

Suddenly, Rainbow Dash shook her head, snapping herself out of the trance. She growled.

"I knew she was a liar! Get them! Don't let them escape!" Rainbow demanded. Suddenly, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash ran into the room. Aria immediately jumped into action as two of the girls came at her, and began backing her into a corner. Pinkie Pie blocked the window, and Rainbow kept an eye on the docile Sonata. Applejack and Rarity closed in on Aria, but the siren didn't let the number of people she was up against undermine her confidence. She had a quick wit, and her fast-working brain remembered one of Rarity's greatest weaknesses: filth. So, Aria did what Rarity would've defined as unthinkable, and...spat on her.

Rarity suddenly froze, and her face showed great evidence of traumatization. Aria took that window of opportunity and pushed past her, making a beeline for the door, planning to mow down whoever was in her way. But before she could, she felt four strong hands grab her and yank her back. She felt backwards, hitting the door hard. She looked up to see Rainbow Dash and Applejack standing over her. 'Oh, great...' She thought as she was held down by the others. She looked over to Sonata to see her getting tied up. Again.

Oh, will the fun never end?

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><p><strong>Hmm...I wonder why Adagio wasn't there...<strong>


	14. Captured Again

**Hey, sorry I haven't updated in a bit. Been celebrating the holidays among other things. And what's worse is that I don't have much to show for it, as this is a _really _short chapter. But I promise the next one will be longer!**

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><p>They took the sirens, who were now both tied up, and brought them to Rainbow's basement so that there was no risk of them being seen. Aria growled as their captors closed the door, leaving them in darkness. Once they were gone, she stopped and sighed.<p>

"Ya know, something's _really_ familiar about this situation..." She said. "I guess karma's out to get us, huh?" Sonata smirked and nodded. "Well, now a-"

"Wait, where's Adagio?" Sonata suddenly asked in a confused tone. Aria blinked at the unexpected question, then looked away before answering.

"She didn't come." She said simply.

"W-what? Why not?"

"Don't worry about it."

"But-"

"Just _drop_ it, Sonata. We need to focus on getting out of here before they do something to us." Aria said, trying to get out of her binds.

"They won't do anything. They're actually pretty nice if you're not on their bad side. Especially Sunset Shimmer." Aria suddenly stopped.

"Wait...what?" She asked.

"I said that they're pretty nice. Sunset's the nicest, though. But you should see how they act towards each other! I'd gi-"

"Wait, so let me get this straight. You..._like_ them?" Sonata glanced nervously to the side.

"Uh...maybe?" Aria turned her head sharply to face the other siren.

"Sonata, you can't be serious!"

"W-well...I mean...why can't we ever do the right thing? Why can't we ever..._make_ friends instead of tearing them apart?"

"Because it's not i-" She then paused and her eyes widened. Then, her expression became angry. "Ugh, I should've listened to Adagio! You _are_ hopeless!"

"But why can't we have what _they_ have?!" Sonata asked pleadingly. Aria looked Sonata in the eyes with what could only be described as anger and betrayal.

"So that's it..." Aria muttered.

"Wha?"

"You like them better than us. You would prefer to be one of _them_! We've known each other for centuries! Does that mean nothing to you?! **(****A/N That was for the guest who said I should mention their age :3)** How can you call yourself a siren?! That's just...shameful!" Sonata shrunk against Aria's rage. "You want to know why Adagio didn't come?! She said that you were a lost cause! That you were hopeless! But I told her otherwise! But she wouldn't listen! I had my doubts, but I came for you anyway! And now...I see that I made a mistake..." Aria seethed. She then leaned against the wall and sighed, releasing a great deal of her anger. She looked to the ground. "I came after you because I believed in you. After I told Adagio I was going, she said that she never wanted to see either of our faces again. But I took that risk. I took it for you. And look where that got me. Where _you_ got me." Aria's fists clenched in anger, but quickly went limp once again. "And now...you want to be one of them. Where does that leave me? Alone on the streets. This right here...this is exactly what I was trying to avoid. Us being separated. Alone. But that's what's happening. And it's all BECAUSE OF _YOU_!" Aria said as she brought her first down hard on the ground.

Sonata scooched back a bit with a whimper. She was scared because she had never seen Aria this angry before. But then something made itself known. She saw something in Aria's eyes. She couldn't identify it immediately, but it certainly wasn't anger or hate. Sadness, maybe? _Fear_? Yes, that's it! But what was she afraid of? Being alone? The outside world? Having no hope of gaining their powers back? Or was it something else? But whatever it was, Sonata knew her friend was in great distress, and she wanted to at least comfort her in any way she could. So, she thought of what would make _her_ happy if she was as stressed out as Aria. Then a thought came to her head, and she smiled a bit. Then, with one swift movement so that Aria wouldn't have time to object, she wrapped her arms around the angry siren and gave her a tight hug.

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><p><strong>Hope this doesn't go bad :**

**Also...wasn't Sonata tied up...? o.o**

**On another note, I am thinking of making a comic for this story. I already have half a page done, and I'm wondering if I should post it on DeviantArt when it is. Tell me what you guys think of this idea!**

**And on that note, I leave you. It's 12:42 am, and I'm tired as hell. If there's any typos in the story, then that's why XD**


	15. Changing Sides

**Here's a longer chapter, just like I promised! ^.^ Also, I forgot to say this last time: Happy New Years!**

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><p>Aria stiffened at the sudden contact, then roughly pushed Sonata off of her.<p>

"Get off me!" She said angrily.

"No!" Sonata said defiantly, wrapping her arms around her again. Aria tried pushing her off again, but she held on tightly.

"What are you doing?! Get off!"Aria yelled, a light blush creeping onto her face.

"I'm trying to cheer you up!"

"Well, you're doing a terrible j-" Aria suddenly stopped mid-sentence when she noticed something. "Uh…Sonata? Weren't you tied up?" Sonata paused for a moment, then let go of Aria and looked at her arms, and then at the ropes on the floor where she had been sitting.

"Oh, yeah. They weren't that tight, so I just…slipped out of them!" She said cheerfully. If Aria hadn't been tied up, she would've facepalmed. Or strangled Sonata. One of those two.

"So you've been untied this whole time, AND YOU DIDN'T _SAY_ ANYTHING?!" Aria asked in disbelief. Sonata chuckled nervously and shrugged.

"Whoopsies…?" The moody siren shook her head.

"Idiot. Just…untie me."

"What's the magic word?" Sonata asked playfully.

"SONATA, _NOW_!"

"Sheesh, _fine_! Why do you have to be so _serious_ and _rude_ all the time?" She asked, going to untie her friend.

"Why do _you_ have to be so _childish_ and _annoying_ all the time?!"

"Well, sor-_ry_ if I don't wanna be depressing all the time like _you_!" Aria rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, just hurry up."

Suddenly, they heard a sound coming from the door. Someone was coming! Aria gasped.

"Sonata!" Aria whispered. "Stop! Someone's coming! Pretend to be tied up!" Sonata looked at the door, a panicked look on her face. She quickly moved away from Aria and grabbed the ropes, putting them in place again.

The door to the basement opened, and in walked a certain red and yellow haired girl. She was holding two plates. She closed the door and walked over to the two sirens with a nervous smile.

"H-hey, there." Sunset said uncertainly. Aria growled in response, and Sonata smiled in greeting. "Well, I thought you guys might be hungry, so I convinced Rainbow Dash to make you a little something." She looked at the blue-haired siren with a smile. "Here, Sonata. I know how much you like these." Sunset said as she set one of the plates down. Sonata gasped.

_"Tacoooooos_!" She said happily as she hungrily eyed them. It took all of her might not to give up pretending to be tied up and snatch them off the plate. Aria rolled her eyes.

"And this is for you, Aria." Sunset set the other plate down, and Aria eyed it suspiciously. On it was a couple chicken legs with a side of peas. "I wasn't sure what you liked, so I hope this is okay." Sunset said with a sincere smile. Aria looked away and scoffed.

"And how are we supposed to eat tied up like this?" She asked. Sunset would have to untie her, then they'd be able to escape! Sunset crossed her arms and smirked, eyebrow raised.

"Sonata, go ahead and eat." She said. With a happy squeal, Sonata grabbed the tacos off the plate and began chowing down, forgetting that she had to act tied up.

"Wha-" Aria began to say.

"Yeah, I knew she wasn't tied up. I made sure to tie hers especially loose so that she could get out."

"But then we'd be able to escape."

"Exactly." Aria raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"But…why? We captured you, hit you, interrogated you…and you want us to escape?!" Sunset kneeled down next to Aria and loosened her binds.

"Listen, Aria. I know we haven't exactly seen eye-to-eye, and some of the things you've done may seem unforgivable, but I believe in redemption." Sunset then smiled with genuine kindness. "And I above all know that everyone deserves a second chance." Aria's eyes widened. Then, Sunset got up and turned to leave. But before she did, she turned around and pointed to the only window in the room. "You're exit's right there when you're ready to leave." She then paused and looked at the sirens. "That is…unless you want to join us." Sonata gasped and Aria growled.

"Yeah, right! Like we'd ever do something like that! I'd rather rot in Tartarus!" Sunset sighed.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. But speak for yourself, Aria." Her eyes then moved to Sonata. "Sonata, what do _you_ choose?" The blue-haired siren's eyes widened. No one had ever asked what _she_ wanted before. She looked nervously at Aria. "No, Sonata. Don't worry about her. What do _you_ want?" Sonata whimpered slightly under the pressure of having to choose. Should she choose her friend that she'd known for centuries, or her new friend who she's only known for almost a week? Well, that wasn't the only thing. She was almost certain that Aria was wrong, and the way that the six friends lived seemed so nice. But Aria was the only other siren that actually still cared about her. Sonata closed her eyes, thinking hard.

"Sonata…" Aria said pleadingly.

"I-I…I…" Sonata stuttered. She knew what she had to do. The _right_ choice. "I choose…Sunset…" Aria gasped and looked at Sonata with utter shock and betrayal. Sonata looked back at her sadly.

"S-sonata…how could you…?" Aria asked. Sonata hung her head.

"I'm sorry…I really am…" Aria scoffed.

"Ugh, whatever! I don't need you, and I don't need your 'sorry!'" Aria got out of her ropes and stood up, beginning to walk towards the window. Sunset grabbed Sonata's hand with a sympathetic smile.

"Come on. Let's go." She said softly. Sonata nodded slowly and stood up. Sunset then grabbed the plates and began walking towards the door, followed by Sonata. The siren took one last sad look back at Aria before following Sunset through the door.

Aria stood there for a minute, thinking about what had just happened. Her eyebrows were furrowed in anger. _How could she?! After everything we've been through, she chooses _them_?__! And to think I ever gave a damn about her! _Aria looked at the window, then sighed and looked down. _So…this is it…_ Suddenly, Sunset's words came back to her, and she remembered the girl's kindness despite how rude she'd been to her. She looked back at the door that Sonata had left through. _Or is it…?_

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><p><strong>Hmm, what will Aria do?<strong>

**What will Rainbow think of Sonata joining them?**

**What will happen to Sonata?**

**Where's Adagio in all of this?**

**Why in the world am I asking so many questions?!**


	16. A Fresh Start

**One of the advantages of shorter chapters: Quicker updates.**

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><p>Sunset brought Sonata to the kitchen and went to put the plate in the sink. She held up the plate that still had food on it.<p>

"Sonata, you wanna eat this?" Sonata looked up halfheartedly.

"N-no thanks. I'm not hungry anymore…" Sunset gave Sonata a sympathetic look before putting the food in a container and placing it in the fridge.

"You made the right choice, you know." The girl said. Sonata sighed.

"I know. At least I think I do, but I _really_ wanted Aria to also." Sunset half-smiled and walked up to Sonata, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I know, but what happens, happens. If you stick with us, you'll have lots of _new_ friends." Sunset said reassuringly. Sonata sighed again. _But I don't _want_ new friends… _"So you ready to see the others?" Sonata put on a small, fake smile and nodded. Sunset put an arm around the siren's shoulders and walked her over to Rainbow's bedroom. Lively chattering could be heard from inside. Sunset opened the door, and the talking immediately became dead silence when they saw Sonata. Rainbow Dash stood up from her bed with a look of disbelief.

"Sunset, what the hell are you doing?! Why isn't she tied up?!"

"Calm down, Rainbow Dash. She's not going to do any harm. She wants be one of us."

"Are you _crazy_?! She tries to kill us, then she wants to be _friends_ with us?! She's obviously lying! Tie her back up!" Sunset's expression became angry, and she moved to stand in front of Sonata.

"No! She's different from the others!"

"How do you know?!"

"I…I just do! She's not evil like them!"

"Oh, yes! You'd know all about 'evil' wouldn't you, she-demon?!" The girls in the room gasped, and Sunset's expression turned to one of hurt. Rainbow's eyes widened when she realized what she said. "S-sunset, I didn't mean-"

"No." Sunset said, her anger returning. "I know _perfectly well_ what you meant!" Suddenly, Applejack walked over and came between them.

"Hey, now. That's enough feudin'. All this fightin' is gettin' us nowhere." She turned to Rainbow Dash with an angry look. "Rainbow, how could you? You know that Sunset has worked really hard to make up fer the things she'd done." Rainbow looked away with an apologetic look and rubbed her arm. With a huff, she then turned to Sunset and Sonata. She looked at the siren cowering behind the girl and gave a sincere smile.

"Sorry about Rainbow. She can be a bit…over the top." Sunset moved out of the way so that Applejack could see her better. "So, yer lookin' ta join us?" She asked. Sonata looked at Applejack shyly and nodded. Rainbow Dash gave an exasperated sigh, wondering how Applejack could be so trusting and forgiving. "Well, then…Sonata, is it?" The siren nodded again. Applejack held out her hand, and Sonata hesitantly took it. "Well, Sonata, ah'm pleased ta see that yer finally turnin' yerself around." Suddenly, Sunset cut in.

"Well, um…there's kinda an issue. She has nowhere to stay, and-"

"Say no more, sugarcube. Ah've got plenty of room at mah place." Sunset smiled and looked at Sonata.

"Well, there you go. All set." She said. Sonata looked to the side nervously. "What's wrong?"

"W-well, I'm not really sure if I'm comfortable with being alone in someone that I don't know's house…"

"Hmm…would you be more comfortable if I went, too?" She asked. _It's not like I have anywhere better to stay._

"Yeah, I guess…" The siren said, nodding. Sunset looked at Applejack.

"Fine with me, sugarcube." She said. Applejack looked back at her other friends. "Well, ah'm gonna go home, now. See ya tomorrow." She said with a curt wave. The others waved and said their goodbyes before the three turned to leave. As they were walking past the basement door, they suddenly heard a sound come from the other side of it. Applejack tensed, and Sunset raised an eyebrow. The door began to open, and out stepped a rather unexpected sight. It was Aria with an uncertain, sheepish look in her face.

"ARIAAAAAA!" Sonata yelled loudly as she threw herself at her friend with the force of a bull. Aria chuckled nervously and looked at Sunset and Applejack.

"R-room for one more?" She asked. The two friends looked at each other for a moment, then looked back at Aria. Applejack put on a sincere smile and tipped her hat.

"Always."

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><p><strong>Well, it looks like Aria and Sonata are starting to be on the same page.<strong>

**But what about Adagio?**


	17. Friendship Is Corny

**Hey, guys! I'm happy to announce that the first two pages of the comic have been posted on DeviantArt for anyone who's interested! My username is Datrandomcat (obviously). So, if you _are_ interested, please check it out, and feel free to leave a comment, feedback, or anything!**

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><p>Applejack took Sunset and Sonata to her house. She greeted Granny Smith and Big Mac as she came through the door, then took her guests upstairs. Sonata was clinging to Aria's arm with a heartwarming smile on her face as they walked.<p>

"We have an extra room fer when mah sister, Apple Bloom, has her friends sleepin' over. And since there's three of 'em, there're three beds. One for each of you. It's perfect." Applejack explained. They followed her to a pretty spacey room. There was a bunk bed on the left side of the room, and a solitary bed on the other. On the walls were drawings of various cutie marks, and pictures of three small ponies doing a variety of stunts. The floor was slightly littered with crayons and paper. "Sorry 'bout the mess, but…you know…kids will be kids." She chuckled. Sunset put a hand on Applejack's shoulder and smiled.

"It's great, AJ. Thanks." Applejack tipped her hat.

"You're mighty welcome." She said. "Anythin' fer a friend." She then looked at Sonata and Aria. "And…friends-to-be. Well, ah'm gonna git goin'. Got a few chores ta do. Make yerselves comfortable." Then, with a slight wave, she turned and left, closing the door behind her. Sunset sighed and walked over to the lone bed, plopping down on it.

"Ah, it feels good to be on a _real_ bed!" She said, stretching out with another, more relieved sigh. Aria went over to the bunk bed and grabbed the ladder to the top bunk. Sonata rushed over and pulled Aria's hand away from it.

"Hey, who says _you_ get top bunk?" She asked with a childish, pouty look on her face. A smug smirk crossed Aria's face.

"I did." She said, grabbing the ladder and quickly starting to climb up.

"Hey!" Sonata yelled, grabbing Aria's waist and trying to pull her back down. Aria was stronger though, and was able to pull away. She sat on the top bunk and stuck her tongue out at the pouting Sonata. "No fair." The blue-haired siren said, crossing her arms and sticking her tongue out back at her. Sunset was watching the scene in amusement. They definitely did their fair share of bickering, that was for sure. But who didn't? She smiled and grabbed the blanket, covering herself and sighing in contentment. It was a bit early, but she was exhausted. She closed her eyes and nestled into the comfort of the bed.

A couple hours later, a strange sound woke Sunset from her sleep. She opened her eyes slowly and looked around. She looked over to the bunk beds to see that no one was in the bottom bunk. Her eyes then wandered to the top one, and saw something she didn't expect. Aria was lying on her back, and Sonata was lying on her with her head on her chest. Sonata appeared to be sleep, but Aria was awake, looking at Sonata and stroking her hair softly. Then, Aria opened her mouth, and the sound happened again. She appeared to be…singing? Or at least attempting to. Sunset raised an eyebrow.

"Aria?" The siren blinked in surprise and closed her mouth immediately. She looked at Sunset.

"Oh, h-hey." She said, looking back to Sonata with a slight blush of embarrassment. Sunset smiled as Aria continued to stroke the other siren's hair. These two may go at each other's throats a lot, but it was obvious they cared for each other. Even if they didn't like to show it.

"She really cares about you, you know." She said. Aria was silent for a moment before speaking.

"Yeah…I know…" She said, a small smile appearing on her lips. "I'll never know why, though. I was always so awful to her. Calling her names and things like that." She then sighed. "And for some reason, I feel…bad. I think I'm going soft." Sunset chuckled.

"Well, nothing's wrong with showing a little kindness every now and then." She said. Aria scoffed.

"Yeah, well…it'll tarnish my tough reputation."

"You know, being tough isn't everything. You can find strength in friendship and-"

"Ugh, _please_ stop talking. That is _so_ cheesy and dumb. I mean, yes, I'm trying out this _'friendship'_ thing, but I'm new to all this, so _do not_ talk like that around me. 'Oh, you can find strength in friendship!'" Aria said in a mocking tone, then fake-puked. "That is one of the corniest things I've ever heard." Sunset smirked and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, but don't worry. You'll get used to it." Aria scoffed.

"Lord Tirek, help me!" She joked. Sunset giggled. Suddenly, Sonata started to move, and Aria lowered her voice. "Woops." Sunset chuckled under her breath and pulled the blankets further up on her. She yawned and smiled sleepily.

"Well, good night, Aria." She said, closing her eyes. Aria's eyes widened. No one had ever wished her a good night except for Sonata on rare occasions, nor had she often wished it on others. She looked at Sunset.

"Good…night." She said slowly before turning her attention back to Sonata. She sighed in contentment for the first time in a long time as she watched Sonata's sleeping form. After the Battle of the Bands fiasco, Sonata had often envisioned friendship, and how good it could be. She would often tell Aria about her thoughts on what it would be like to have friends. At the time, it seemed preposterous, and Aria would say something rude in turn. But she now knew that all the other siren ever wanted to do was help. She _would_ apologize to Sonata for the things she had said and done to her in the past, but she had too much pride. So, she wrapped her arms around the siren and drew her closer, and promised that she'd never treat her like that again.

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><p><strong>Aww, Aria <em>does<em> have a heart.**

**But she still can't seem to let go of the want to sing. I mean, it's what the sirens were practically _born_ to do. It's like having the one thing you were made for stripped away from you in an instant. T^T**


	18. The Book

**Hey, guys! Not much to say other than I hope you're enjoying the story so far!**

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><p>The next morning, Sonata woke to the feeling of movement. Her eyes fluttered open, and she saw that she was lying on Aria, and her head was resting on her shoulder. She tried to get up, but was restrained by something. That's when she felt Aria's arms wrapped tightly around her, as if she were holding onto her for dear life. A light blush crept onto Sonata's face, and she tried once again to get free.<p>

She was able to loosen Aria's grasp on her until, finally, she was out. She slowly moved over to the ladder, trying not to wake the sleeping siren. Then, once she was in the clear, she got on the ladder and started to climb down. She reached the floor and stretched, letting out a yawn. Then, immediately, she switched into 'Sonata Mode,' and started looking for something entertaining to save her from the dark depths of boredom. What could she do while she waited for the others to wake up?

She looked around the room, and spotted the crayons and paper on the floor. She could draw, maybe. She smiled as she went over to a pile of blank papers on the floor. She took a handful of crayons and began drawing. After a bit, she looked up from her work, and something shiny caught her eye. She looked in the direction of it, and saw something gold under Sunset's bed. Sonata, being the curious siren she was, was drawn to it. She went over to the bed and reached under it. She pulled out a…book? The binding had a bit of gold on it, and on the cover was a red and yellow sun that reminded her of Sunset's hair. Now that she thought about it, it looked exactly like the symbol on the girl's shirt! Curiosity gripped her further, and she wanted to see the book's contents. Then a thought occurred to her. What if it was her diary? It wouldn't be nice of her to read that. But something felt weird when she held it. It was a familiar feeling. It reminded her of...home.

She quickly looked at Sunset, then Aria. They were still asleep. So, she went and sat on the bottom bunk of the bed and opened the strange book. She started reading Sunset's entries, and the messages she received. She saw mention of many familiar names that she had long forgotten. There was a lot of mention of Princess Celestia, and even Princess Luna. Then, she read over another name. This one made her lips curl up into a snarl, and she subconsciously began to let out a low growl. Her demeanor completely changed.

"Star Swirl..." She muttered angrily. It was practically unnatural for Sonata to feel such animosity towards others, but she had been taught by her fellow sirens to hate this particular name over the span of many years. It had become second nature to hate the old pony for what he did to them., the hatred only building up over the years. Suddenly, she heard someone start to stir, and she looked up. Sunset was moving slightly. Sonata forced her anger down, and her unintentional growling stopped as well. She let out a sigh and continued reading. She found that most of it was boring and meaningless to her. Something about magic...Princess Celestia...more magic...something about betrayal...a magic portal...friendsh- Wait, what?

Sonata paused as she looked back at the last page. She reread the passage again, and sure enough, it mentioned some sort of portal. She raised an eyebrow as she reread the passage once again. It seemed like a message asking for help. It said that there were three girls that seemed suspiciou-oh. She realized that it was talking about her and the other sirens. She then read the next part. Sunset wrote that she needed Twilight to come back from Equestria through the portal. Sonata's eyes widened. Portal...from...Equestria?

"Hey, don't read that!" She head someone yell. Before she knew it, Sunset had ripped the book from her hands. She could hear Aria sit up above her, most likely woken from Sunset's sudden outburst. "What do you think you were doing?!" Sonata looked to the side.

"W-well, I...I-I...just-"

"Oh, leave her alone, Sunset. She couldn't have done anything _that _bad." Aria said as she climbed down the ladder. Sunset let out a sigh and looked at Aria.

"Look, she didn't do anything wrong. I just...can you give us a minute? I need to have a word with her." Aria looked at Sonata with an expression mixed with confusion and worry before stepping towards the door.

"Uh...yeah, sure." She said, stepping out of the room. When she was sure she was gone, Sunset stood in front of Sonata with a scornful look on her face.

"I-I'm sorry. I...I didn't know..." Sonata stuttered nervously. Sunset closed her eyes and sighed before walking over and sitting next to Sonata on the bed.

"Don't worry. You're not in trouble. Just...tell me what you read." Sonata gulped and looked away. "Sonata, _please_." The siren looked back at her, then looked down.

"W-well, I saw a lot of messages and stuff..."

"Okay, and...?"

"That's about it."

"Are...are you sure?" Sonata nodded, but her expression still showed a bit of nervousness.

"Sonata, you're not...lying, are you?" Sunset pressed. Sonata looked away and sighed.

"And...I might have also read something about...a portal..."

* * *

><p><strong>Well, looks like Sonata now knows a<em> bit<em> more than she should.**

**And a _lot_ of you have been asking 'Where's Adagio?' Well, don't worry. She'll be back in the story soon. :3**


	19. I Promise

Sunset pinched the bridge of her nose and groaned.

"Damn it..." She muttered. Sonata looked at her, eyes wide.

"Is...is there really a portal in this world that goes to Equestria?" Sunset looked at the siren, wondering how much she knew, and how much she should tell her. Finally, the girl nodded, and Sonata gasped.

"For realzies?!" She asked loudly due to excitement. Sunset quickly put a hand to her mouth and shushed her.

"Be quiet." She said. Sonata nodded, and Sunset removed her hand.

"But this is great!" Sonata whispered happily. "You can tell me where it is, then we could go back home, and then Aria would be SO happy! And then me, Aria, and Adag-" Sonata suddenly stopped mid-sentence as the third siren came to mind. She sighed and closed her eyes, losing all excitement she'd had. Sunset put a hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" She asked. The blue-haired siren opened her eyes slightly and stared at the floor.

"Adagio..." She muttered.

"What about her?"

"I...I just...want us to be together again..." Sonata looked at Sunset with saddened eyes. "But she's so stubborn. I wish she would join us. But she didn't even want me anymore. Then she had Aria, but she decided to leave with me. Adagio must feel so alone right now..." Tears started to form in Sonata's eyes. "And...a-and...we just left her!" She said as she started full-on crying, and she covered her face with her hands. Sunset looked to the side. She didn't really know what to do in this situation. After a bit of hesitation, she then did the only thing she could think of, and put her arms around Sonata, who immediately hugged her back, and she started crying into the girl's shirt.

"Shh...it's okay..." Sunset said softly. "Don't feel bad. It's her own fault and loss that she didn't want someone like you around her."

"B-but...I could've done better so that she'd still want me!"

"Sonata, let me tell you something. If Adagio didn't like you for just being yourself, then she needs some help. _Good_ friends like you for who you are, not who they want you to be."

"R-really...?" Sonata said with a sniffle, her crying starting to die down.

"Mmhm." Sunset said with a nod. Sonata managed a small smile and hugged Sunset tightly before letting go.

"Th-thanks, Sunset..." She said as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"No problem." Sunset said, returning the smile. "It's what friends do." Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. "Yes?" Sunset asked. The door opened, and they saw Applejack step through.

"Uh, we got some breakfast on the table if either of y'all are hungry." She said, then paused and looked back towards the kitchen before looking back at the two. "And ah don't remember her name, but the purple-haired one is already in there, and ah'd like y'all ta help me keep an eye on 'er in case she...ya know...tries anything."

"And what exactly would she do, Applejack?" Sunset asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, ah don't know! It's just gonna take some time for me to trust 'em is all. I was just givin' 'em the benefit of the doubt lettin' 'em inta mah home." She then looked at Sonata. "No offens-" She then paused when she noticed the siren's tear-stained face. "Hey, are...are you alright, sugarcube?" Applejack asked, worry in her tone. Sonata sniffled and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She said, managing a smile. Applejack nodded, and her eyes lingered on Sonata for a couple more seconds before they moved to Sunset.

"So, how 'bout it?" She asked.

"Yeah, we'll be there."

"Alrighty, then. Well, see ya. I gotta go help Big Mac harvest some apples for some apple pie." She said as she left the room with a wave. After Applejack was gone, Sunset looked at Sonata.

"Hey, why don't you go to the bathroom and wash your face. Then you can join us in the kitchen. Okay?" She asked. Sonata nodded. She then suddenly bolted up from the bed, a smile on her face.

"Yeah, and then I can tell Aria about the por-"

"No!" Sunset said, cutting Sonata off.

"Huh? Why not?" The siren asked, confused.

"Look, you just have to promise me that you will not tell _anyone_ about the portal. The only ones who know about it are us and you. _No one_ else can know. Not even Aria."

"But _why_?" Sonata pressed. She didn't want to tell Sonata that she didn't trust her or her friend.

"Well, it's just that...you see...I'm not sure if it's wise for you to go back. I mean, you're not exactly going to get a warm welcome. And I trust you, but I don't know if Aria won't do something if she were to go back."

"But our pendant thingies broke. We couldn't do any harm!" Sonata concluded. Sunset sighed and looked down, thoughts full of uncertainty. After a bit of thinking, she looked back up at Sonata.

"Yeah, maybe you're right. But...I'd feel more comfortable if you gained our trust first. Then we'll see." Sonata thought for a moment before slowly nodding.

"O-okay...I guess..." She said.

"You promise not to tell?" Sunset asked. There was a long pause before Sonata spoke.

"...yeah. I promise."

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm...will Sonata keep her promise?<strong>


	20. An Unexpected Encounter

**Hope you enjoy the chapter! I decided to put a bit of humor in this one, but only a bit.**

* * *

><p>Aria sat in the dining room chair, moving the contents on her plate around. Applejack had said that they were apple pancakes, and on the side was a freshly-made, glazed apple fritter. Aria made a disgusted face before cutting a piece of a pancake off with her fork and putting it into her mouth. She wretched, and immediately wanted to spit it out. To help it go down, she grabbed the glass of juice Applejack had set next to her plate and took a sip. But it was…apple juice. She spit it back into the cup as she swallowed the small piece of pancake.<p>

"That's not very sanitary." She heard a voice say. She looked up to see Sunset looking at her with an amused smirk.

"Quiet, you." Aria said in annoyance, but with a playful hint to her tone. Sunset chuckled before heading over to an empty spot at the table that had a plate on it, which was across from Aria. The siren growled as she looked at her plate.

"What's wrong?" Sunset asked as she began cutting her pancakes.

"Everything here is made of…" Aria paused as she cringed. "…_apples._"

"So?"

"I hate apples..."

"Yeah, well…I'm sure they hate you, too." Sunset joked. Aria rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Whatever. But I'm _not_ eating this." Sunset eyed the siren a bit before speaking.

"You know, you're awfully picky for someone who doesn't get a decent meal very often." Aria just grunted indignantly in response. Suddenly, Sonata waltzed into the room, and she immediately hungrily eyed the last unoccupied plate. She smiled and ran over to the table, sitting down and grabbing one of the pancakes on her plate. She didn't even bother using a fork as she picked it up and began tearing into it. Aria fake-gagged and looked away, slouching in her chair.

"Where's Applejack?"Sonata asked, mouth half full of food.

"She's out working." Aria answered. Sonata swallowed her food and gave the other siren a questioning look.

"But isn't she going to eat breakfast?"

"She already ate. These country folk wake up _too_ early." Sunset nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I think she works too hard. But...she likes that lifestyle, so...what're you gonna do?" The girl said with a shrug. Aria then began to fiddle with the food on her plate again. Sunset looked at the siren and sighed.

"You know, the food that our hosts so kindly made for you is going to get cold and go to waste." Aria just huffed and looked to the side boredly. Sonata stopped her eating and looked at Aria.

"You're not eating?" She asked. Aria looked at her.

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"'Cause I don't like apples."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't."

"Why not?"

""Cause I don't want to!"

"Why not?"

"SONATA!" The blue-haired siren whimpered and shrunk in her seat.

"Sorry…" Sonata said. Aria grunted and rolled her eyes. Sunset chuckled at the scene as she ate her breakfast. When she was done, she took her plate and put it in the sink.

"Aria, do you _ever_ eat? You didn't eat at Rainbow Dash's house, and you're not eating now! Aren't you hungry?" Sunset suddenly heard behind her.

"Leave me alone, idiot."

"But you have to eat!" Sunset turned around and saw Sonata over by Aria, and she was trying to force-feed her. Aria tried pushing her away, but Sonata wouldn't yield.

"Get away from me!"

"Not until you eat something!"

"No!" Sunset watched and shook her head. Did these two ever stop fighting? They're like a couple of little kids. She didn't know that friendship came with babysitting.

"Stop fighting, you two. Aria doesn't have to eat if she doesn't want to."

"_Thank_ you." Aria said. Sunset then held up her hand to signify that she wasn't done yet.

"But she _won't_ have another opportunity to eat until lunch."

"Fine with me." Aria said with a shrug. Sonata pouted.

"Here, let me take that." Sunset said as she took the food-covered plate and put the food in a container, then into the fridge just as she had done at Rainbow's. Once she was done, she turned to the two sirens. "Now, how about we go into town?" Sonata jumped up, a happy smile on her face.

"YES!" She yelled. Aria looked at Sunset with an emotionless expression.

"That's your idea of fun?" She asked monotonously. Sunset shrugged.

"Yeah."

"Oh, Aria, stop being such a sourpuss and have some fun for once!" Sonata begged, pulling on the other siren's arm. With a groan, Aria reluctantly stood up.

"_Fine_."

"Yay!" Sonata yelled, running to the front door. Sunset looked in the direction Sonata had ran.

"Where does she get all that energy from?" She asked jokingly. Aria surprisingly smirked.

"Heck, I've been around her for centuries and _I_ don't even know." She said, shaking her head as she walked towards the front door. Sunset hesitated for a moment before following behind Aria.

~o~

As they were walking around town, Sonata was looking around at everything with a childlike gleam in her eyes. Aria was walking with her arms crossed and a bored look on her face. They were walking through a rather secluded part of town that led to a large park.

"Can we go back, now?" Aria asked with the tone of an angsty teenager. Sunset rolled her eyes.

"Aria, we've only been walking for six minutes."

"That's six minutes too many." Sunset shook her head and ignored the purple-haired siren. She wondered how she could change so suddenly. When she had first seen her that morning, she'd been in a decent mood. Then, when sonata came in and started 'bothering' her, she snapped. And before they left, her mood had gone up a bit, but now she was grumpy again. What _was _it with this girl?! Well, maybe she's just easily ticked. Easily annoyed. She'd have to change that attitude if she was going to start accepting friendship. No one would want to be her friend if she kept that up. Well...except Sonata. Who _knows_ why she liked Aria so much. Why does she cling to her when she acts the way she does? How come-

"You!" They suddenly heard a voice say venomously from behind. All three of them turned around, and they gasped. There was a few moments of silence before Sonata took a step forward, her expression showing mixed emotions.

"A-adagio..." She muttered.

* * *

><p><strong>Your welcome, Adagio lovers.<strong>


	21. Adagio's Return

**Yes! Finally done, and _finally_ a long chapter! This chapter gets pretty intense =(O.O)= and I apologize ahead of time for all you Adagio lovers. This got more out of hand than originally intended X3**

* * *

><p>Adagio's fists clenched as she eyed her former 'friends.' Aria's mouth formed a strict line as she noticed this, knowing that her ex-leader wasn't here on good terms.<p>

"What do you _want_, Adagio?" Aria asked in a cold tone. The siren growled before answering.

"You know what I want? I want to know what you're doing with _her_!" She spat, pointing at Sunset.

"It's none of your business. Why should _you_ care _anyway_? We're not your problem anymore." Aria growled. Adagio's eyes widened for a second, then she began to chuckle. Her chuckle then turned into straight out laughter.

"Oh, so _that's_ what's going on!" She said as her laughter began to die down. "You're joining the 'good guys,' huh? You're going to make some _friends_? What a joke!" Sunset's eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"It's true, Adagio! They're actually _trying_ to make better people of themselves! I don't see _you_ doing anything!" She said angrily. Adagio raised an eyebrow before a grin spread across her face.

"People? People?! They aren't _people_, Sunset, dear. They're monsters. Cold-hearted, negativity-seeking monsters. And no amount of _friendship_ or anything will change who they are. _What _they are. It's in our nature. In our blood." Hearing this, Sonata held up her hands and looked at them._ Am I really a…monster? I can't change?_ Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked over to see Aria giving her a comforting smile. Adagio saw this and scoffed. "Oh, and what's this? You two are all buddy-buddy, now? How can you even stand to be around that sorry excuse for a siren, Ari?" Aria looked at Adagio angrily, and took a couple steps towards her.

"Shut up." She growled menacingly. Adagio smirked, knowing she was getting under the other siren's skin.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm just surprised at how soft you've gotten. I mean, first you ditch me…_ME_…to run off with _that,_" She said, pointing at Sonata, "and then you join with _them_?! Really, Aria. I expected more of you. I thought you were _tough_."

"Shut. Up." Aria demanded again.

"But I always knew you were weak." Adagio continued, her smirk widening into a grin.

"Shut up!"

"But, let's face it, we all knew you'd never be as strong as me. You hardly deserve to call yourself a siren."

"I-" Aria began to say, but stopped when she saw Sonata suddenly run up and stand between them. The blue-haired siren then turned to Adagio, looking angry and slightly hurt.

"Hey, shut the heck up you big meanie! She's the bestest person that I've ever met, and she's twenty times the siren _you'll_ ever be!" Adagio's smirk disappeared, and was replaced with a scowl. She quickly walked up to Sonata, who was only about a yard away, and grabbed her by her collar.

"_What_ did you say to me?" She hissed. But instead of cowering like what would be expected of her, Sonata kept a firm glare and held Adagio's gaze. She didn't flinch or try to back up in any way. Aria just watched, frozen in place. This wasn't just a stare down. It was a spar for dominance.

When Adagio saw that Sonata wasn't being intimidated, she growled and leaned closer to her, trying to appear more intimidating. Sonata still did not relent, but she knew that Adagio would no doubt best her, so she decided to break the dominance battle, and did something no one would've expected her to do.

She spat on Adagio's face.

With an angry yell, she threw Sonata to the side, and the siren hit the ground hard. Not feeling the least bit of remorse, Adagio then turned to Sunset, who'd been watching in shock with her hand over her mouth. The siren pointed menacingly at her.

"_You _did this to them! You brainwashed them somehow, and made them join you! They weren't like this before!" She said as she began walking towards Sunset. "There's no way they changed _just like that_! This is all_ your _fault..." Sunset's eyes widened when she saw Adagio's sick grin, and the item she was pulling from one of her pocket as she stalked towards her.

A knife...

Sunset was frozen in fear as Adagio was only a couple feet away, now. The siren raised the hand that was clasping the weapon, ready to use it on the defenseless girl. Then, she made her advance, and quickly lunged as she swung the knife forward at Sunset. But before it could reach her, a hand grabbed Adagio's arm, which stopped it mid-swipe. Sunset was quivering slightly as she stood there, frozen and wide-eyed.

Adagio looked at the one who had dared interrupt her, and saw Aria looking at her with a disgusted and bitter expression. Aria then pushed Adagio, who stumbled backwards a couple steps.

"What the _hell_, Adagio?!" Aria yelled. Adagio held the wrist that Aria had grabbed and looked at the offending siren with an angry glare. "What's _wrong_ with you? I mean, I know your crazy, but a _knife_, Dagi?! Come _on_! You can't be _that_ crazy!"

"Watch me." Adagio growled. Aria's cold glare soon showed a hint of worry.

"What's happened to you, Adagio? You'd never do something like this before! I mean, you're trying to attack someone with a weapon, and you plan to justify it by pretty revenge? That's a new low...even for you."

"Shut the hell up you worthless piece of garbage!" Adagio said as she took a swing at Aria, who moved backward just in time, accidentally backing into Sunset, who now seemed to snap out of her frozen state.

"Woah!" Sunset said as she stumbled back. Adagio wasted no time going at Aria again, this time with more aim, but Aria kept dodging and blocking one attack after the other.

"What the hell's wrong with you, you psycho?!" Aria asked before Adagio barreled into her, knocking her down. The siren pinned the other, fury written in her expression.

"Ha! What's wrong with _me_?! What's wrong with _you_?! You ditched me at I time I needed you most! And what's worse: you ditched me for..._her_!" She yelled. Aria looked at Adagio's face. She couldn't really tell because it was barely noticeable, but were those...tears?

"Adagio, you need to calm down!" Aria said. "This has gone too far!" Adagio paused for a moment, then she scowled.

"It's only too far when I say it is." She growled before taking the knife and placing the blade on Aria's cheek. "Just tell me one thing, Aria. Why did you join them?" Adagio's voice started to shake. "How could you? They're beneath us! Have you no pride in what we are? You'd rather be around humans and learn about _friendship_! Have you forgotten the things we had done to get as far as we did?!" Adagio yelled. Aria thought for a moment as she was held under the furious siren. _What had happened to her? Had she finally snapped? Finally...lost it?_ She then tried to look towards the others, but couldn't due to the knife pressing against her cheek. Why weren't they helping her?! Sonata might be hurt, but Sunset was just fine! Well, looked like she had to handle things on her own. She felt the knife press further into her skin, just barely cutting it. "Well, Aria?" Adagio growled. The siren looked at her former leader with a scowl.

"You call yourself 'strong,' Adagio, but you don't know what 'strength' is. Yes, we've been though a lot together, but it doesn't mean anything we did was right. But you won't accept the fact that what we did was a mistake. You don't want to be wrong."

"No, shut up..."

"But even if you _did_ realize the wrongs you've done, you would never accept it. Anyone can realize when they made a mistake, but it takes a _strong_ person to admit it."

"I said _shut UP_!" Adagio yelled as she brought the blade across Aria's cheek, leaving a gash. Aria hissed in pain and tried to struggle out of her grasp, but Adagio was stronger. Adagio then took the knife, and held it above Aria's chest.

"Goodbye, Aria, dear. Oh, and you could've done better...at _everything_." She growled. Aria, hopeless without any chance for escape, closed her eyes and accepted her fate.

"No!" She heard Sonata yell, suddenly. Then, just as suddenly, she felt Adagio's weight on her disappear in an instant. She dared open her eyes, and was surprised when she saw Sunset standing there, a furious expression on her face. Then, the girl extended a hand to the purple-haired siren, who took it gratefully. Standing up straight, she looked over at Adagio, who was now on the ground. Aria's eyebrows furrowed, but her eyes showed a mix of emotions. Anger, worry, pity, among others. Adagio's knife had flown away from her when she had been kicked off of Aria, so she was now defenseless. Sonata walked up and joined the other two, and she stared at Adagio as well. A couple seconds passed with Adagio staring at the ground. She then looked up, a crazed look in her eyes. She looked up further and growled.

"Don't you dare look down on me!" She yelled at the three, but still, no one moved. That was, until Aria took a few steps towards her, but still kept a safe distance.

"Adagio..." Aria said softly. "Let us help you. You can join us. You don't have to be alone." Aria half-smiled, but Adagio just continued glaring at her in return. "_Please_, Dagi..."

"_Go to hell_." Adagio said venomously. Aria sighed and looked down. After a couple seconds, she looked at Adagio.

"Have it your way..." She said solemnly as she turned to leave. Sunset then turned to follow the siren, but Sonata stayed. She continued to look at Adagio, not wanting to leave her alone again. Sonata knew how it felt to be left alone by the only two people you ever gave a damn about, so she could guess what Adagio must be feeling. Adagio glared at Sonata from where she sat on the ground.

"Just _go_..." Adagio muttered, looking away. Sonata looked quickly back at Sunset and Aria who were still walking away, then looked back at the other siren. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. She took it and placed it on the ground in front of Adagio before running off with the others.

Once the other's had gone, Adagio hesitated for a few minutes more before finally looking at the paper and reaching for it. She flattened it out and looked at it. Suddenly, she put a hand to her mouth, and as she looked at what was on the paper, a solitary tear escaped her eye and slid down her cheek, landing on the paper in her hands.

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm, I wonder what that paper was that Sonata left for Adagio...<strong>

_**And **_**I wonder if this is the last time we'll be seeing her...**


	22. At Least We Have Each Other

**Hey, guys. Sooo...a _lot_ of you are reading way too much into the piece of paper Sonata gave Adagio. XD No, it had nothing to do with the portal, but it-**

**...well, just read the chapter and let Sonata explain. X3**

* * *

><p>Everyone was quiet as the trio walked back to Applejack's. Aria kept looking straight ahead, her expression emotionless. Sunset kept shooting worried glances at her, wondering what she could be thinking. But Sonata kept looking back, regretting every step they were talking away from her former leader. Though Adagio had done terrible things, Sonata still felt like she needed Adagio. It just felt like something was missing without her. Sonata was suddenly pulled from her thoughts when she heard Aria groan. She looked at the other siren in worry as she stopped walking and put a hand to her head.<p>

"A-aria? Are you okay?" She asked. Aria removed her hand from her head and looked at Sonata.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just…I need to sit down…" She said. Sunset scanned the area and saw a bench not too far away.

"There." The girl said, pointing. Aria looked at the direction she was pointing and saw it as well.

"Yeah, that looks good." She said as she began walking towards it, followed by the other two. When they reached the bench, Aria plopped down onto it, and Sunset and Sonata sat on either side of her. The blue-haired siren looked at her friend in worry.

"Are you sure you're fine, Ari?" She asked. Aria looked at Sonata and smirked, leaning in close to her.

"Yeah, but I just got a little light-headed. I guess I'm…pretty hungry." She paused for a moment before speaking again. "But don't tell Sunset!" She whispered. Sonata giggled softly.

"Well, you should've eaten! We haven't had a decent meal for a couple days. I tried to make you eat, but you're so darn picky!" She whispered back. Aria chuckled.

"Oh, please. You're starting to sound like Adagi-" She stopped herself mid-sentence and looked down. She then leaned away from Sonata back to her original position with a sigh. Sonata looked at her.

"You miss her, don't you?" She asked. Aria was silent for a moment before answering.

"Well, as much as I hate to admit it, I do kinda miss…the old Adagio."

"The old Adagio?"

"Yeah. That person back there…that was _not_ Adagio. The way she looked, what she did…she'd _never_ do something like that." Sonata nodded in agreement.

"Well, maybe this'll make you feel better…" She said. Aria looked at the other siren as she took out a bag from her pocket. Aria's eyes widened as she realized that they were chips.

"Where'd you get those?" She asked. Sonata smiled sheepishly, then put on an innocent face.

"Well, I might have maybe kinda-sorta…_stole_ them…" She said with a smirk. Aria returned the smirk.

"You little devil!" She chuckled. Sonata opened the bag and gave it to Aria. Sunset watched this, and though she had told Aria not to eat until lunch to teach her a lesson, she let it slide. She was just relieved to see the two getting along. She sighed and looked away, staring into space.

Aria hungrily snacked on the chips, even sharing some with Sonata, which was a first. As Aria was chewing, she looked over at her friend, and remembered that she had not left with them right away when they had walked away from Adagio.

"Hey, Dusky?" Aria asked. Sonata perked up, happy to see that Aria was in a good enough mood to call her by nickname.

"Yeah?"

"How come you didn't leave with us right away? Why'd you linger around Adagio for a few seconds?" Sonata blinked, and looked down like she was thinking. She then looked back at Aria.

"Well, you see…before you woke up this morning, I was bored and stuff, so I decided to draw. I drew a picture of you, me, and Adagio…the _real_ us…back in the ocean…" She muttered. "And before I left, I had an idea. I gave Adagio the picture so that maybe she could remember how happy we were when we were together. I was hoping that maybe…she would see how much we love her...and how much we need each other. That she doesn't have to be alone. And then, maybe, she'll want to join us." Aria smiled genuinely and put a hand on Sonata's shoulder.

"Look, I think it was a _really_ nice thought, but…I don't think a simple little drawing is going to change her mind." Hearing this, Sonata looked down.

"Oh…" She muttered. She then sighed. "Yeah, you're probably right…" Aria noticed her friend's mood plummeting. She then did something unexpected, and put her arms around Sonata, letting the siren rest her head on her chest. Sonata was surprised at this at first, but quickly relaxed.

"Hey, cheer up, Dusky. After today, I realized how lucky we are to have at least each other. It would've been a lot worse if we'd all gone our separate ways." Sonata nodded slowly.

"Like you said, Ari. We're the only ones like us in this world, so we…have to stick together." She said. Aria smiled.

"Exactly."

"But what about Adagio? She's a siren too, but she's all alone…" Sonata said. Aria sighed.

"Yeah, but…she chose her own path. It sucks that she chose the loneliest one…"

"Yeah…"

"But, hey, at least we still have each other. And while you can be overly annoying, obnoxious, loud, and a bit slow, sometimes…" She said, then quickly ruffled Sonata's hair. "…I still care about you. We have a bond that's grown over many centuries…one that's not easily broken. And while it doesn't seem like it, I know that Adagio knows that, too. I'm sure that, one day, she'll come around…" She said. Sonata smiled brightly at this, and sighed. Sunset smiled at the sight before finally speaking up.

"So, you guys ready to head back?" She asked. Sonata got off of Aria, and Aria sighed as she stood up.

"Yeah, I think so." She said. With a nod, Sunset stood up as well, and started walking. "C'mon, Dusky." Aria said. Sonata jumped up from the bench with a smile, and began walking with Aria. The purple-haired siren, though not too happy with how things went today, was feeling pretty content otherwise.

As all three were walking back, Aria suddenly felt something brush up against her hand. Then, someone grabbed it. She looked over to see Sonata with a child-like smile on her face. Aria smiled back and looked ahead again, holding Sonata's hand in return. And, hand in hand, they walked back to Applejack's without another word.

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><p><strong>Awww, how cute.<strong>

**So, yeah, it wasn't the portal. If you remember two chapters ago, Sonata had drawn a picture, and the purpose of that extra scene was so that this could happen. And while giving Adagio info about the portal would make a _much_ more awesome and compelling story, I'm sticking with the drawing, because it comes in later as well. :3 Sorry to disappoint y'all if I did.**


	23. Don't Leave

**Okay, guys, prepare for some Sonaria fluff! I even said 'aww' while rereading it XD**

**Also, to answer one of my reviewer's questions, I update just about every other day...unless I'm really busy (which is almost never 'cause this cat don't have a life XD).**

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><p>After having a long day with Adagio attacking them, then coming home to help Applejack with some chores, the three were relieved as they went up to their shared bedroom. Aria let out a yawn as she started climbing the ladder to the top bunk. Sunset fell onto her bed with a sigh, and Sonata reluctantly climbed into her bottom bunk. Sunset looked at the two before speaking.<p>

"I don't know how Applejack manages to do that _and more_ every day." She said in disbelief.

"Yeah. Does she even get any help?" Sonata asked. Sunset nodded.

"I think her brother helps out a lot, too."

"She has a brother?" Aria asked, eyebrow raised. Sunset rolled her eyes.

"Duh. We passed him, like, four times."

"Oh…"

"Yeah…" After the conversation, an awkward silence ensued. It was like that for a couple minutes before Sunset broke the silence with a sigh before speaking.

"Well, goodnight. Hopefully, we have a better day tomorrow." Sunset said before inconspicuously reaching under her bed, grabbing the book, and putting it under her pillow to avoid another 'unfortunate situation.'

"You said it." Aria said.

"Goodnight, Sunset! 'Night, Aria!" Sonata said happily. And with that, they all got comfortable and quickly fell asleep.

A couple hours into the night, Aria's eyes fluttered open when she heard something. She rubbed her eyes and yawned, a bit grumpy now from being robbed of some seriously needed sleeping time. She lied there for a moment, listening. Then, she heard it again. She realized that it was coming from below her. She slowly sat up and peeked over the side of her bed, looking at the sleeping siren underneath. Sonata was slightly squirming every couple seconds, and she kept muttering something incoherent. Aria was about to try to ignore the slight noises and go back to sleep, but then Sonata started whimpering, and what happened next surprised Aria.

Sonata started crying.

_Why is she crying in her sleep? What could she be dreaming about?_

"N-no…no…" She suddenly heard Sonata mutter, her voice becoming a bit louder. "N-no…don't…don't leave…no…" Aria raised an eyebrow. Was she dreaming about the night they left her? "A-adagio…p-please…Aria…d-don't go…" She muttered through quiet sobs. Well, that answers that. Aria sighed. She _really _wanted to go back to sleep, but she felt like she was obliged to do something about her friend. It…_was_ kinda her fault that Sonata was having this bad dream in the first place…

Aria rolled her eyes, finally giving in. She took a quick look at Sunset, making sure she was still asleep. She didn't want to be caught in the act and be accused of going soft. She was not! It was merely…an act of…_friendship_! Yeah, that's it. And isn't that what she was supposed to be learning about in the first place? Just a friendly act…right?

Aria slowly climbed down the ladder as to not make any noise, and made it quietly to the floor. She took another quick look at Sunset before turning her attention back to the trembling and lightly sobbing Sonata.

"Why does she have to be such a baby…?" Aria muttered to herself before climbing over Sonata onto the bottom bunk with her. She lied next to her and gathered the sleeping siren in her arms. Sonata's trembling lessened slightly, but she continued to sob. Aria contemplated on what she should do. She sighed as an idea came to her head, but it would put her reputation at risk. But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was getting Sonata to calm and quiet down. She held the siren a bit closer.

"Shh, shh…it's okay." She said softly.

"P-please don't l-leave me here…" Sonata muttered again. Then, suddenly, she grabbed a handful of Aria's shirt in each hand, gripping it tightly as if she were trying to stop her from leaving. Aria was quiet for a moment before speaking.

"It's okay, Sonata. I won't leave you." She whispered. "Never again…" This seemed to work, and after a couple seconds, Sonata's sobs became less and less until, finally, it stopped altogether. Relieved, Aria began to move to get up, but Sonata somehow gripped Aria's shirt even tighter than before, and nestled her head into the crook of her neck. Aria froze at the sudden action, and then a blush crept onto her face. "Idiot…" She muttered. With a slightly annoyed sigh, Aria relaxed once again next to Sonata, allowing her to hold onto her. She was too tired to fuss about it at the moment. Aria closed her eyes, trying once again to fall asleep, when she suddenly heard a voice.

"That was a great thing you just did..." Aria's eyes snapped open and she looked in Sunset's direction. The girl was looking at her, and she had on a sincere half-smile. Aria then just rolled her eyes and closed them, finally falling asleep without any more interruptions.

Well, there goes that reputation…

The next morning, Aria woke on her own for the first time in forever. No sounds woke her. No Adagio yelling at her to get her lazy butt up. She woke up naturally, on her own terms. She let out a yawn and a content sigh. She attempted to stretch, but was unable to. That's when she came to full awareness of her surroundings, and noticed Sonata. But she wasn't in the same position that she remembered. Instead of holding onto her shirt for dear life, Sonata's arms were _around_ Aria. The siren rolled her eyes and grabbed Sonata's arms, removing them from around her. Sonata, in her sleep, began struggling to grab onto Aria again, but since she was asleep, she was weaker and easy to take care of. After that, Aria climbed over Sonata and got out of the bed. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stretched, then began walking out of the room. She stopped short, though, when she heard voices coming from the kitchen not too far away. It sounded like…Sunset and Applejack. Aria looked back at the girl's bed, and sure enough, she wasn't there. The siren took a few steps into the hallway, inching closer and closer to the kitchen until she could clearly hear what they were saying.

"-sure if that could happen. Do ya trust 'er?" She heard Applejack say. There was a long pause before she heard Sunset speak.

"Well, I…well, it's just…what happened yesterday. She saved me. Adagio was coming at me, and she stopped her. She even got injured because of it." When Aria heard this, she lifted her hand to her injured cheek, feeling the gash. She then knew that they were talking about her.

"Well, how do ya know it wasn't just somethin' personal?"

"Well, the strange thing is…I don't even think Adagio was going to do anything to either of them. It seemed like she was only after me for whatever reason. So, Aria didn't have to step in, but she did anyway at her own expense. I mean, I don't trust her like I do you, but I certainly have a lot more faith in her. She'd been acting really selfless, lately. Like she was yesterday, and like last night when she comforted Sonata. I'm telling you, she's different. She's changed some." Sunset explained. Applejack, taking all this in, nodded with a sigh.

"Okay, ah _do_ see yer point, but ah don't think she's quite there yet ta know about the…" Applejack's voice dropped a bit. "…you-know-what…" Aria's eyes widened.

"I know, Applejack, but…" Sunset sighed. "I'm just saying that they're making decent progress. I mean, who knows? One day they _may_ be fit to go back."

"Ah don't know, sugarcube. Ah mean, what if they're jus' tryin' ta gain our trust so that we'll _think _they're good and whatnot?"

"If that were the case, then why would Aria have put herself in harm's way to protect me?" This got Applejack, and she was silent for a bit, like she was thinking. Finally, she spoke.

"Okay, let's do _this_. How 'bout we keep an eye on them for a bit, and if they show themselves ta be surely reformed, then we'll consider allowing them to go back." Hearing this, Aria's eyes narrowed. She then backed up and went back to the room to make it look like she'd never heard a thing.

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><p><strong>Looks like Aria knows a bit too much too, now...but not as much as Sonata. It's a good thing that she only got some vague hints...<strong>

**But who's to say that she won't ask if Sonata knows something... ;3**


	24. Goodbye, Reputation

**Hope you can handle a bit more fluff X3**

**Oh, and also, (I am announcing this for specific reasons) if you hadn't picked up on it yet, this is a Sonaria fanfic, as in a pairing of Sonata and Aria. So, if it makes you uncomfortable, then don't read it. **

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><p>Aria retreated back into the room quietly and went over to the bunk beds. She sat on the edge of the bottom bunk. She sat there for a bit, thinking. <em>What the heck were they talking about? Go back? Back to where? Is it what I think it is? It has to be! And what was the 'you-know-what' that Applejack as talking about? <em>Aria growled. _I _knew _they knew something! Heck, if there's a way back to Equestria…_

Aria rested her head on her hand and sighed. Suddenly, she felt a tug on her hair. She looked to her right to see Sonata grabbing a good amount of her hair and hugging it. Aria couldn't help but smile as she removed her hair from the sleeping siren's grasp. Then, Sonata grabbed her arm. Aria groaned.

"Must she grab everything that comes within five inches from her?" She muttered. She shook Sonata, trying to wake her up.

"No…go away…" She heard her mumble. First she's crying because she doesn't want her to go, and now she's telling her to go away? What in the world…

"Sonata, wake up." Aria said. "I've got something to tell you." Slowly, Sonata's eyes opened.

"H-huh?" She said with a yawn, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Aria?"

"Hey, idiot." Sonata sat up and stretched before looking at Aria sleepily.

"Why'd you wake me up? What do you want?" She asked.

"I have something to tell you." Aria repeated. Sonata gave her a questioning look. "Well, you see, I was eavesdropping on Sunset and Applejack a-"

"Wait, you were eavesdropping?" Sonata asked with a slight gasp. "That's not nice, Aria!" The siren rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. But, like I said, they were talking, and they mentioned something about…'going back.' I think they might've been talking about Equestria!" Aria whispered. Sonata's eyes immediately snapped open wide. "That means that there _must_ be a way back!" Sonata's eyes darted to the side nervously.

"U-uh…oh, that's…great." Sonata stuttered. Aria gave her a questioning look.

"What's wrong? I thought you'd be happier about this."

"W-well, it's just…umm…" Aria's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Sonata?"

"Y-yes?" She asked.

"Why do you look so nervous…? Do you…know something?" She asked. Sonata's expression turned to worry.

"Uh, n-no! I don't know anything!" Sonata squeaked. Aria let out a growl.

"Sonata, I've know you for over one thousand years! I think I can tell when you're lying!"

"N-no, I'm not!" Aria then suddenly grabbed the trembling siren by the collar and put her face inches from Sonata's.

"What do you know...?" She asked. Sonata let out a whimper. "Sonata!" With a squeak, Sonata relented.

"Okay, okay!" She said, causing Aria to release her. Sonata looked down with a sigh. She then got out of the bed and went over to Sunset's. She went to look under the bed, and she gasped. "It's gone!" Aria raised an eyebrow.

"What's gone?" She asked.

"The book!"

"Book?" Aria asked questioningly. Sonata began looking frantically all over and around the bed. The removed the pillow from the bed and sighed in relief.

"Found it."

"What's that?"

"It's Sunset's journal." Aria raised an eyebrow as Sonata opened the book and looked through the pages, but she accidentally went too far and went to the very last entry. She was about to turn back when she noticed that the ink looked fresh. It was a new entry. "What the…" Sonata said as she began reading. Aria watched Sonata's expression change from confusion to slight excitement. Curiosity was eating at her.

"What is it?" She asked. Sonata looked up with a gleam in her eyes.

"She's talking to a princess in Equestria, and she said that if we prove ourselves, then she'll let us go back!"

"Sunset said that, or the princess from Equestria?"

"The princess!" Aria's eyes widened.

"Seriously?!" Sonata nodded. "Wait a second…so that means that there _is_ a way to go back!"Aria said as she suddenly tried to grab the book from Sonata, but the siren moved it out of the way just in time. "What're you doing?! Give me that!"

"Why do you need it?" Sonata said with a slightly scornful expression.

"I need to read it! It probably says where it's located!"

"Yeah, it probably does." Sonata said matter-of-factly. Aria tried to grab the book again, but once again, Sonata moved it. She then closed the book and put it back on Sunset's bed where she had found it.

"What are you doing?! Don't you wanna get out of here?!" Aria said angrily as she stood up to get the book. She started walking, but halfway across the room, she was stopped. Aria froze as Sonata threw herself at the siren in a tight embrace, burying her face in her neck.

"Aria, please don't…" She pleaded.

"What? Why not?" Aria said, her voice instinctively softening.

"Because if we leave now, then they won't like us. We should do what it says and prove that we're better. These people were the only ones willing to give us a chance. And if they don't like us, then no one will."

"But, Sonata, wouldn't you rather be free? We could leave right now!"

"Aria…wouldn't you rather be _here_ and _liked_, or _free_ and _hated_? And it's not like we'll be here forever. We just have to prove we can do good." Aria sighed and looked away uncertainly. She then felt Sonata release her, and something grabbed each of her hands. She looked back at Sonata to see her holding her hands and giving her the best puppy eyes she'd ever seen. "_Pleeeeaaase_, Aria? For me?" She asked as her bottom lip started quivering. Aria couldn't help but smirk at this and gave a defeated groan.

"Ugh, _fine_…" She said. Sonata suddenly jumped up happily.

"Yaaay!" She said as she threw her arms around Aria's neck, hugging her once again.

"Yeah, yeah." Aria said with a roll of her eyes as she hugged back, but with much less enthusiasm.

Suddenly, Aria heard a creaking sound, and she looked over to the door. She saw Sunset in the doorway with a surprised smirk on her face.

"Am I…interrupting something?" Sunset asked jokingly.

Yep. Reputation…down the drain.

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><p><strong>Aria: *sigh* Goodbye, reputation... You had a good life. R<strong>**est in peace...**


	25. The Kitten

**This chapter is dedicated to the all-too-awesome Kamenridersamurai on DeviantArt, who pretty much came up with the idea for this whole chapter! Thanks a ton for the idea!**

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><p>The next day, after grieving the loss of her notoriety, Aria deiced to go for a walk. She needed to get her mind off of the craziness that had happened the past couple days. She needed to get away from all the <em>friendship<em> crap for a bit. She walked down to the more secluded part of town which led to the large park. This was the same place they had that face-off with Adagio. Aria looked around warily, not wanting to be caught alone if the other siren was still lurking about. But, fortunately, she was nowhere to be seen. Aria breathed a sigh of relief as she finally reached the park.

The siren looked around the large, grassy area. There were a few people, but not many. A few trees dotted the area as well, and there was a nice, decorative fountain in the middle of the park. All in all, it was a pretty decent place to get your thoughts together. Aria went over to a bench not too far away and sat down, breathing in the almost-midday air.

She sat there for a long time, just think about past events, current issues, and her future with this 'new life.' Almost an hour had passed when she suddenly heard a sound. She looked up and scanned the area. That's when the noise became identifiable. It was the sound of crying. Aria sat up straight and looked around some more. That's when she saw the source. It was...a little girl. She was standing under a tree and crying. She also appeared to be saying something, but she was too far away to hear.

Aria stood up and walked over to the girl curiously. The crying got louder and, honestly, Aria found it more annoying than saddening. She got up to the girl, whose tears soaked her face and little blue dress. She was looking up at the tree's branches. Aria looked at her.

"Hey, kid, what's wrong?" She asked. The little girl turned to Aria and attempted to wipe her face with her sleeve, but that proved in vain as more tears poured out.

"M-my c-c-cat…" She stuttered.

"Your what?" Aria asked. The girl looked up and pointed at the branched of the tree.

"M-my kitty, L-lilly…" She said. "Sh-she climbed up the t-tree, and she won't c-come back down…" Aria would've rolled her eyes at the simple problem, but something made her stop. As she looked at the girl's tear-stained face, a certain blue-haired siren came to mind. Aria's eyes widened as she remembered all the times that she had caused Sonata's face to look like this. The times she had made her cry. And that made something in Aria shift. She felt something somewhat unknown to her: empathy.

Aria looked at the girl for a second more before looking up at the tree. Sure enough, there was a small, white kitten on one of the branches looking down at the two curiously. With a look of determination, Aria grabbed one of the lower branches and wasted no time in hoisting herself up to the next one. She heard the little girl gasp. Using previous branches as footholds, Aria quickly made her way up, one branch at a time, until she finally got to one right near the kitten. She reached out to it, but it pressed itself close to its branch and hissed, swinging one of its clawed paws at Aria's hand. The siren growled as she quickly brought her arm back. She looked at the blood slowly seeping out from the scratch on the back of her hand. She then looked back at the cat.

"So, you wanna be like that, huh?" She said before quickly reaching out and grabbing the kitten by the back of the neck to hold it in place before the poor animal could react. "Bad choice." She said as the kitten hissed at her again.

She then grabbed the kitten's scruff and lifted it off the branch. She held it in one arm as she made her way down using the other. When she finally got to the ground, she knelt down with an exhausted huff and held the kitten out to the little girl. The girl clasped her hands together and gasped, the happiest expression on her face. She then took the cat from Aria and held it close to her.

"Lilly!" She said happily before looking at Aria. "Thank you soooo much!" She said.

"Yeah, yeah, kid. Don't mention it...ever." She said as she moved to stand up. But before she could, she felt two small arms wrap around her neck. She froze, not used to contact from strangers. Her eyes then widened as a new, warm feeling coursed through her. _What in the world? _Was that…happiness?

Aria then sighed, and did something she thought she'd never do. She hugged the little girl back with the feeling of genuine care. This was _so_ out of character for her. The kitten watched from where it stood in the grass, probably wondering why the girl wasn't giving it attention instead. The little girl let go and picked up her cat, cradling it in her arms as it let out a happy meow.

"Bye-bye, nice lady!" The little girl said happily with a wave as she walked away. Aria did a slight wave back, a half-smile appearing on her face. She'd never been called..._nice_ before. And you know what? It _felt_ nice. Maybe...kindness wasn't _all_ that bad...

Aria stood up slowly and turned around, walking back the way she came. But little was she aware of the three girls standing behind the fountain, who were gaping in surprise and shock. One of them took the hat from her head and held it to her chest.

"Well, ah never..." She said in amazement. "You were right, Sunset..."

"I told you. She _is _different." Sunset said. The third one, however, stayed silent. The blue-haired girl just watched as Aria walked away. Her eyes were slightly watering, but not from sadness. It was from pride and joy.

"I _knew _she could do it..." She finally whispered.

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><p><strong>So, Aria finally accepts that <em>maybe<em> having a good rep is better than having a bad one.**

**_And_ looks like she got caught in the act. Uh oh X3**


	26. Being Afraid Is For Losers

**Yet another chapter idea from Kamenridersamurai! Enjoy!**

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><p>Aria returned back to Applejack's house and went to her room. Little was she aware of the eyes watching her from between the open door and the wall. They tracked her movements, and when she came close to the door, the watcher jumped out from her hiding place, engulfing Aria in a surprise hug.<p>

"Agh!" The purple-haired siren said with a mix of surprise and annoyance. Once she realized who her assailant was, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sonata, you scared the heck out of me!" She said in a scornful tone as Sonata clung to her. The blue-haired girl squealed happily.

"Oh, sorry, Aria! It's just that I'm _soo_ proud of you!" She said. Aria looked at her questioningly and pushed her off of her.

"Wait, proud? For what?" She asked. Sonata looked at her friend and smiled.

"Well, you see, when you left the house earlier, I saw you leave, and I told Sunset and Applejack, and then we all followed you to see where you were going, and we _totally_ weren't stalking you, and we saw you go to the park and save that kitten while we were hiding behind the fountain!" She said in one breath before gasping for air. Aria just stood there, dumbfounded. She shook her head and glared at Sonata.

"Wait, you followed me?"

"Yep!"

"What the heck, Sonata?! Do you have _any_ respect for _privacy_?!"

"Nope!" Sonata said cheerfully.

"Ugh…" Aria said as she facepalmed. She then looked at Sonata. "And everyone else saw, too?" Sonata shook her head.

"Nah. Only Applejack, Sunset, and I." Aria crossed her arms.

"Well, at least it's not _that_ bad then, I guess." She said with a roll of her eyes. It was silent for a moment before Sonata perked up and suddenly grabbed Aria's arm.

"Oh, my gosh! Ari, I almost forgot!" She said excitedly, slightly bouncing up and down.

"What?"

"The girls are having a movie thingy tonight, and I think that we should join them!" Aria made a slight attempt to move her arm from Sonata's grasp, but the siren held her firm.

"What?! Are you crazy?!" She asked. Sonata then made a pout face, and her eyes became big and glossy.

"B-but…it sounds like fun, Ari..." Sonata muttered. Aria looked away.

"No. Nope. Not gonna be persuaded by your puppy eyes." She said, resisting the temptation to give in to Sonata's adorableness. Wait, what?

"_Pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaase_, Ariaaaaaa?!" Sonata pleaded. Aria stole a glance at Sonata's face, and she had to admit, she had definitely perfected her puppy-eyed persuasive face.

"Ugh, no!" She said. Sonata, now seeing that her puppy eyes weren't working, moved to plan B: annoyance.

"Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, _pleeeaaase_?" Aria covered her ears with a growl of annoyance. Sonata then pouted and upped her game. She took a deep breath and-

"PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PL-" Sonata was shushed as Aria's hand covered her mouth.

"Okay, okay, we'll join them! Just _shut up_!" She said, removing her hand from Sonata's mouth.

"Yay!" The blue-haired siren said, engulfing Aria in another hug.

"Ugh, you do that _way_ too much…" She said with a defeated sigh.

~o~O~o~

Five girls sat in Applejack's living room, waiting for Rainbow to bring the movie. Rarity refused to sit on the floor, so she sat on the couch, along with Sunset. The others were sprawled out on the floor. Pinkie Pie sighed in boredom.

"When's she gonna get here?" She asked.

"Be patient, Pinkie. She'll get here soon enough." Applejack reassured her. No sooner had she said that did Rainbow suddenly burst through the door, panting as if she'd been running.

"I'm here! And I got the movie!" She said before closing the door and walking over to her friends.

"So, what movie did ya bring, Rainbow?" Applejack asked curiously. A sly grin crossed Rainbow's face.

"Oh, nothing. Just that _new horror movie that just came out about that psycho killer_!" She said. Fluttershy gasped.

"B-but isn't that supposed to be really…um…_violent_?" She asked softly. Rainbow's grin widened.

"Yeah. It's even rated R because of all the blood and gore!" She said. Rarity then cleared her throat.

"Rainbow, dear, are you sure that that kind of movie is, well, _appropriate_ for our movie night? I mean, we normally watch much less…_dark_ things."

"Oh, don't be a chicken, Rarity. It just came out! We should totally watch it! And, sure, this is a bit darker than what we're used to, but what's wrong with changing things up a bit?"

"_Chicken_?! Well, I-" Rarity began, but stopped when Applejack put a hand on her shoulder and shook her head, indicating her to just drop it.

"Go ahead and put it in, Rainbow. It can't be _too_ bad." She said.

"Now, _that's_ what I'm talking about!" She said as she went over to put the movie in. Then, suddenly, the girls heard footsteps. They turned their heads to the stairs to see two sirens standing at the base of them, looking at the group. Rainbow Dash stood up.

"They're _still_ here?!" She asked with a scowl. Sunset rolled her eyes and looked at the sirens.

"Hey, guys! Care to join? We're about to watch a _scary movie_!" She said. Sonata shook her head excitedly.

"Uh, whatnow?! No they can't!" Rainbow protested.

"Oh, don't start anythin', Rainbow. Sure they can join!"

"But this is supposed to be _our_ movie night!"

"So? What's wrong with addin' a couple others?"

"What's wrong is that it's supposed to be _just us_."

"Well, if ah'm not mistaken, ah believe ah recall you sayin' that there's nuthin' wrong with changin' things up a bit." Applejack concluded. Rainbow opened her mouth as if to speak, but quickly shut it, knowing she'd lost the argument. With a huff, Rainbow went and sat on the floor in front of the couch.

"_Fine_." She said. Sunset rolled her eyes and patted the spot on the sofa next to her. With a smile, Sonata grabbed Aria's hand and led her to the couch. Once they were seated, Applejack went to turn out the lights to 'set the mood' for the scary movie. They were practically in pitch darkness except for the bright screen in front of them, the only thing giving off light. As the movie played, everyone was pretty cool about it. Well, except for Fluttershy, who was now hiding behind the couch, shielding her ears from the screams of the killer's victims. Some of the others, however, were pretty into it. But no one was more into it than a certain purple-haired siren. She couldn't take her eyes off the screen. She'd even let out inaudible chuckles whenever the killer claimed a victim. Sonata, however, was not enjoying the movie as much as her. She was clinging to Aria's arm tightly as she watched the killer's rampage. Aria had to admit, it was definitely really bloody. Honestly, if she'd been alone, she probably wouldn't have been able to watch this movie. But, for some reason, she found it comforting to know that she wasn't alone.

Finally, after about an hour and a half of nonstop murder, the movie ended. Applejack went to turn on the lights again, and Aria found everyone else's faces priceless. They looked somewhat shaken. Pinkie Pie was wide-eyed and hugging her knees, Rarity was shaking, Applejack looked uncomfortable, Sunset looked disturbed, and Fluttershy was probably still behind the couch. Sonata sighed with relief, glad that it was over. The only ones who didn't seem to be that impacted by the movie were Aria and Rainbow Dash.

"Well, that was...uh...interesting." Applejack said, taking the movie out and putting it back in it's case. She then handed it to Rainbow Dash.

"Wasn't that an a-" Rainbow began to say, but the lights suddenly went out, thrusting everyone back into darkness. Fluttershy whimpered from behind the couch, and everyone gasped. Then, a loud boom was heard from outside. Sonata clung tighter to Aria with a whimper and squeezed her eyes shut. Aria rolled her eyes.

"It's just a storm..." She mumbled with an eye roll.

"Okay, ev'rybody, calm down. It's just a little storm. Nuthin' ta get worked up over." Applejack said. After a few seconds, everyone seemed to calm down.

"Well, looks like heading back home's not an option, now. Would it be okay if we crash here for the night, AJ?"

"Sure." Applejack said with a shrug. "Ah don't see why not." Another boom sounded, much closer this time. All the girls who were on the floor huddled a bit closer together while Fluttershy remained behind the couch, too scared to move.

"Maybe the scary movie wasn't such a good idea..." Sonata whispered to Aria as she clung to her. Aria chuckled.

"Yeah, maybe not." She said as she lied down on the couch, leaving room for Sunset on the other half as she lied down as well. There was no more room on the couch, so Sonata had to practically sleep on top of Aria, much to the purple-haired siren's annoyance.

~o~

Many times during the night, Sonata would move in her sleep, sometimes making it uncomfortable for Aria. She had to keep moving her back to a position that'd be comfortable for both of them, causing Aria to lose some much-needed, precious sleep time. During one of those times, she'd been moving Sonata when she heard a slight creaking noise in an unidentifiable location. She craned her neck as far as it'd go, but saw nothing through the darkness. She was about to shrug it off as the house being really old, but she then heard it again, and what sounded like footsteps. She tensed and became nervous. _What's that sound? The wind? An animal? One of the girls? A...psycho killer?_ She then shook her head, attempting to rid the thought. _No, that's ridiculous...right? __Why am I even nervous? That movie wasn't scary, so why am I even thinking like that? _She then let out a sigh and closed her eyes, attempting to go back to sleep. Another boom suddenly sounded, causing Sonata to jolt awake. She started shaking.

"Calm down, Sonata. It's just thunder." Aria said in a surprisingly soft voice.

"B-but...what if there's a...a psycho out there?" Sonata asked fearfully.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. It was just a movie." Sonata nodded slowly, but didn't seem convinced. Then, suddenly, an extremely loud boom echoed through the sky, seemingly right above the house. This time, Aria was the one surprised, and her immediate reaction was to grab the closest thing to her: Sonata. And the blue-haired siren, despite her fear, smirked at this.

"Oh, Aria..." She said in a mocking tone. "...it's just thunder." Aria, realizing what she was doing, quickly released Sonata and scowled.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She said. Sonata then smiled at her.

"It's okay to be afraid, Aria." Sonata then rested her head on Aria's shoulder. "Everyone's afraid of _something_." Aria scoffed.

"I'm not afraid!" She whispered, trying to be as quiet as possible.

"It's okay, Ari. Your secret's safe with me." She said. With an aggravated sigh, Aria closed her eyes.

"Whatever..." She said as she tried once more to go to sleep. But before she did, she felt Sonata, who was still shaking a bit, cling tighter to her as another boom filled the sky. She rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around her in a comforting manner. But despite her annoyance, a slight smirk appeared on her lips.

"Idiot..." She muttered before closing her eyes again and finally falling asleep.

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><p><strong>Aria: Being afraid is for losers...<strong>

**Sonata: *Giggles* Then I guess you're a loser.**

**Aria: Shut up!**


	27. The Star

**Prepare for the cutest and fluffiest chapter thus far! Heck, _I_ fangirled while writing this! XD**

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><p>The next morning, Aria opened her eyes slowly as she began to wake up. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. She then looked sleepily at Sonata, who was still lying on her, and noticed something. She was drooling. On her.<p>

"Agh!" Aria exclaimed in disgust as she pushed Sonata off of her, who fell to the floor with a thud. With a gasp, Sonata sat up and looked at Aria. Then she realized what happened.

"Hey!" She said with a pout. "That wasn't nice!" Aria sat up on the couch and looked at the drool-covered spot on her shirt.

"Ugh…well, maybe you should learn to keep your bodily fluids to yourself…" She muttered. Sonata then looked at Aria sheepishly.

"Oh, heheh…sorry…" She said. Aria rolled her eyes and got up from the couch, heading to the kitchen to get a paper towel. On her way back out of the kitchen, she then realized something. _Wait, where are the others? _She walked into the living room again and looked around. _Where's Sunset? Where's _everybody_? How long was I asleep? _She looked to the clock on the wall. 12:37. Well, that explains it. The other girls must've gone home by now. But where're Sunset and Applejack? She went and sat on the couch.

"Sonata? Have you seen the others this morning?" She asked the blue-haired siren, who was still sitting on the floor.

"No, silly. I was asleep, remember?" She said matter-of-factly. Aria rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Duh~" Sonata said in a sing-songy voice. Aria shook her fist playfully at the other siren.

"You're asking for it, Dusk." She said. Sonata giggled and put on a fake scared face.

"Oh, no! I'm soooo scaaared!" She said. Aria smirked.

"Yeah, you should be!" She said in a jokingly threatening voice. Then, the two started giggling together. Then, their giggling turned to full-on laughter. After a few seconds, Aria's laughing slowed, and she looked at Sonata. She'd forgotten how good it felt to laugh. And she missed _this_. Just joking around with Sonata like she used to…before Star Swirl. Aria smiled and ruffled Sonata's hair. Sonata put her hands over her head protectively.

"Hey, why do you always do that?!" She said with a giggle.

"Because I can." Aria responded with a smirk. Sonata then stuck her tongue out at Aria, who returned the gesture. Then, a sly smirk appeared on the blue-haired siren's face, causing Aria to raise an eyebrow. Sonata then reached into her pocket and pulled out a silver star, waving it around in front of Aria. The purple-haired siren's eyes widened as she realized what it was.

"Hey, how'd you get that?!" She asked with a laugh, reaching for her hair ornament. Sonata held it away from her, giggling. "Give it back!"

"No!" Sonata giggled as she then grabbed Aria's arms, which surprised her assailant, and pulled her to the ground as well. Aria gave Sonata a playful glare, and the other siren got up and tried to run away now that her attacker was grounded. But as she started to run, Aria grabbed her ankle, and Sonata fell once again with a surprised yelp. Aria then crawled over to Sonata and held her down, keeping her from trying to run off again. She reached for the star in the struggling siren's hand.

"No!" Sonata laughed. "You can't have it!"

"Give it to me now, or you'll regret it!" Aria responded, laughing. Finally, after a bit of a tussle, Aria pinned Sonata's arms to the ground. Then, suddenly, Sonata's laughter stopped. Aria looked down at her and noticed that the blue-haired siren was looking at her slightly wide-eyed. She then felt what could only be described as butterflies in the pit of her stomach for reasons she didn't know as she looked Sonata in the eyes, her laughter stopping as well. As they stared at each other, Aria felt a new emotion course through her that she couldn't identify. And, though Sonata was pinned under her, making the hair ornament within her reach, this emotion clouded her judgment, causing the little star in Sonata's hand to no longer be the center of her attention. Her focus was completely on the siren underneath her.

She couldn't think straight, and it felt like her body was no longer in control as she slowly leaned her head downward until her face was a couple inches from Sonata's. She was surprised when Sonata's eyes fluttered shut, and her's did the same. She leaned forward further, barely an inch away when...

The sound of a door slam startled the two, and their eyes snapped open. Aria, whose mind was now working properly, realized her position and gasped. Sonata's mind snapped back to reality as well, and the two sirens quickly separated from each other, and each sat a few feet from the other on the floor. Sunset and Applejack then walked into the living room holding grocery bags. They looked at the two in slight confusion.

"Why are you two on the floor?" Sunset asked, eyebrow raised. Sonata and Aria glanced at each other before looking back at Sunset.

"Uh...reasons?" Aria answered with a shrug. Sunset stared at the two for a moment before speaking.

"Uh...okaaaay..." She said. She then cleared her throat. "Well, we got some stuff from the grocery store for lunch, so you two should get to the table. I mean, if you're hungry, that is." She said slightly awkwardly before going into the kitchen with Applejack to prepare lunch. Aria and Sonata stood up from the ground, and before Aria could walk to the dining room, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Sonata with a light blush on her face. Sonata then held out the hand with the star in it.

"H-here, Aria. I...shouldn't have taken it." Aria hesitate for a moment before smiling and taking the star from her hand.

"It's okay." She said as they started to head to the dining room. "In fact, I'm kinda glad you did..."

**Awwwww! X3 Hope you enjoyed!**


	28. Friendship's Not So Bad

**Jeez, just fluff, fluff, and more fluff X3 I can't resist...the call...of writing cute scenes...!**

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><p>Aria and Sonata sat next to each other at the table. After a few minutes, Applejack and Sunset came in holding four plates of food. She put one plate in front of Sonata bearing, you guessed it, tacos. She squealed happily and immediately began chowing down. Sunset looked at Applejack with a smirk.<p>

"Told ya." She said. Applejack chuckled and put a plate in front of Aria, containing corn and chicken nuggets. Aria looked at it, eyebrow raised.

"What am I? A child?" She asked. "This looks like what you would find in a three year old's lunchbox." Sunset rolled her eyes as her and Applejack sat down with their own plates.

"Well, you never told me what you liked. It's your own fault." Aria scoffed and pointed at the siren next to her.

"_She _never told you what she liked!"

"Yes, but she makes it obvious. You, on the other hand…" Sunset said with a smirk. "Now, be quiet and eat. Unless, of course, you think it's wise to skip another meal." Aria growled under her breath and grabbed her fork, beginning to eat.

"Picky…" She heard Sonata suddenly whisper under her breath. Aria kicked Sonata's leg under the table, causing the blue-haired siren to yelp in surprise. "Hey! That wasn't nice!" She exclaimed. Aria smirked.

"Oh, yeah? Whatcha gonna do about it, 'Toothpaste?'" Sonata looked confused for a moment before a look of realization crossed her face. She grabbed a bundle of her hair and looked at it, noticing its toothpaste-like look. A sad look crossed the sirens face as she stroked her hair.

"You're mean." She said, pouting. Applejack then cleared her throat loudly, causing the two sirens to look her way.

"Okay, okay, that's enough, now. No need ta argue. Why don't you two put your dishes in the sink and go out to town or somethin'? I think you could use the fresh air." Aria groaned, but Sonata bounced excitedly.

"Yay! Come on, Aria!" She said, grabbing her and Aria's plates and putting them into the sink. Aria was surprised how quickly Sonata went from pouting to happy as can be. She continued to sit in her chair, unmotivated to move. Sonata went up to her and clasped her hands together, giving those all-too-well-known puppy eyes. Aria sighed. How could she say no to that?

"Ugh, _fine_." She groaned, standing up. With a gleeful squeal, Sonata grabbed Aria's arm and ran out of the house, dragging the poor siren behind her. Applejack chuckled and looked over at Sunset.

"Ah can see what you mean about them actin' like kids." Sunset chuckled as well.

"Yeah, it's like I'm being forced to babysit."

"Yeah, heheh. So, a bit off-topic, how do ya think Aria's progressin'? Is she improvin'?" Sunset though for a moment before answering.

"Yeah, actually. Quite a bit, if fact. But, to be honest, I kinda feel bad for her." Applejack tilted her head a bit in confusion.

"Why is that, sugarcube?"

"Well, you see, she talks in her sleep. I mean…I'm not being creepy or anything, but I sometimes listen to her. We do sleep in the same room, so I don't really have a choice. But it's so sad when she sleep-talks. She even cries, sometimes."

"And why is she cryin'? Do ya know?" Sunset's expression became solemn, and she looked at Applejack.

"She misses home…" She said. Applejack's eyes widened.

"Do ya think…" Applejack paused before continuing. "Do ya think she actually wants to go back home because she misses it, or for more…sinister reasons?"

"Well, I don't think they could do much harm without their amulets. And I think she knows that. So, what other reason could she have to want to go back? And why would she cry about it if it weren't for emotional reasons?" Applejack looked down for a moment, thinking. After a couple seconds, she looked back up.

"Well, ah see yer point. And, yes, I admit that she has shown herself to be…better than before. How 'bout this: We watch them 'til the end of the week. We'll report to Princess Twilight about their progress, and she can determine if they're fit to go back." Sunset smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan." She said.

~o~O~o~

Aria was rubbing her aching shoulder as she and Sonata walked down the sidewalk past Sugarcube Corner.

"Jeez, you nearly dislocated my shoulder…" She said. Sonata giggled.

"Well, you shoulda came with me the first time you were told." Aria rolled her eyes. "So…" Sonata started out of boredom. "…whatcha wanna do?"

"Go back."

"Aw, you're no fun." Sonata said. Aria sighed in boredom as they continued to walk. They walked for a bit until Sonata spoke up again.

"Hey, Aria?"

"Yeah?"

"That was a lot of fun earlier, huh?" Aria smiled a bit.

"Eh…yeah, I guess."

"You _guess_? I haven't seen you laugh that much or be that fun since Star Swirl banished us. Just like old times…" Sonata nudged Aria's arm. "…right, Aria?" Aria smirked and sighed.

"Yeah. Just like old times."

"Just like the old times when you weren't a big old grump." Sonata joked.

"And the old times when you weren't so annoying. Oh, wait…you were always this annoying." Aria laughed.

"Hey!" Sonata exclaimed, pushing Aria a bit. Aria pushed her back with a giggle. Aria wondered how they could quickly go from arguing to goofing around. Was this…what friends do?

"You know…" Sonata began, snapping Aria from her thoughts, "…I missed you. The old you. The _real_ you. You changed for some reason after Star Swirl banished us. You became all…grumpy." It was true. Aria had never been so dull and easy to annoy. She used to be pretty cheerful and easygoing, even. Not to Sonata's extent mind you, but just average. But ever since they'd been banished, she could hardly force a giggle of genuine happiness. Only recently had that changed, but she wondered why. Aria was pulled from her thoughts again when she felt something grab her hand, causing the butterfly feeling to make itself known again. Her eyes wandered down to see Sonata's hand holding hers. She smiled and lightly squeezed the other siren's hand, a light blush spreading on her cheeks. Why was she blushing? Why does she feel butterflies when the other siren merely just makes contact with her? What was this strange emotion that she kept feeling? It made her heart quicken, and she didn't like it.

Suddenly, a sound caused Aria to snap back to reality. A low growling could be heard. But it wasn't from any creature. Aria looked at Sonata, a surprised look on her face. Sonata looked sheepishly down at her stomach.

"Sonata, you can't tell me you're hungry!"

"Heheh…"

"You just ate!"

"Well, it's not my fault my stomach's not full, yet!" Aria rolled her eyes, wondering how Sonata wasn't overweight by now, and looked around. She spotted a small donut place not too far away.

"There." She said, pointing to it. Sonata's gaze traveled to where Aria was pointing, and raised an eyebrow.

"But we don't have any money." Then, suddenly, a sly smirk crossed Aria's face. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a twenty dollar bill. Sonata's eyes widened. "Aria, you didn't!"

"I _did_." Aria said proudly, waving the bill in her hand. "Don't worry. Applejack won't miss it." Sonata hesitated before letting out a small giggle.

"You're so _bad_." She said as her and Aria began walking towards the little shop.

"I know." She said with a smirk. When they entered the shop, Sonata dashed right up to the counter, surprising the lady behind it.

"Uh…hello, ma'am. What can I get for ya?" She asked as Aria walked up to the counter as well.

"Oo,oo, I want that one!" She said, pointing, then paused for a moment. "Oh, wait, no! I want that one. No, that one!" The lady started to look a bit annoyed.

"Sonata, can you please just make up your mind?" Aria asked, eyebrow raised.

"Oh, but Aria, they all looks so good!" The siren rolled her eyes and decided to get _her_ order out of the way.

"I'll take the one with pink frosting and sprinkles." Aria said. The woman nodded and went to go get it. Aria turned to Sonata. "If you don't pick something soon, I'll pick it for you." Sonata whimpered as she looked at all the choices.

"Can I have…all of them?" Sonata asked.

"No. You know how you are when you eat too much sugar. Remember last Halloween?" Sonata smiled sheepishly.

"Oh…yeah." She chuckled. She then sighed as the lady handed Aria her donut and stood, waiting for Sonata's order. "Uh…I'll just take the double chocolate one…" She said. The lady nodded once again and went to get her donut. After a few seconds, Sonata received hers.

"That'll be $3.85." The lady said. Aria handed her the twenty and waited as the lady counted out the change. Once she was done, she handed it to Aria. "Thank you. Enjoy." The lady said as the two went to one of the few tables and sat down, both sitting on the same side. They began eating their treats in silence until Sonata spoke up.

"Wow, this is really good!" She said. "I can't even remember the last time we had _fresh_ donuts." Aria nodded and shuddered, remembering that one time the three of them had been so desperate for food that they had to go…dumpster diving. And that was only a few days after their banishment. And that dumpster happened to be right behind a donut shop. Wait a minute…

"Well, I'm just glad we don't have to do _that_, anymore." Aria said as she finished her donut. Sonata smiled at Aria.

"And, you know, we'd probably be out there having to live like that again if it weren't for those girls." Aria rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I suppose that's true…"

"Of course it is." Sonata then rested her head on Aria's shoulder and looked at her. "See how good having friends can be?" She asked hopefully. Aria didn't want to admit it, but Sonata _did_ have a point. If those girls hadn't attempted to befriend the three, then they'd probably be on the streets…like Adagio. Or…maybe even _dead_. At this realization, Aria smiled. They didn't have to take them in after everything they did, yet they still did. But she remembered Sonata, and how she used to ramble on about friendship. She'd said that friends forgive each other, and accept each other despite their faults. She turned her head to see Sonata still looking at her, awaiting an answer.

"Yeah. I do." She said simply with a small smile. _Maybe…friendship wasn't so bad after all…_

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><p><strong>Hmm...looks like Aria might finally be accepting all this. And all because of Sonata. X3 No one can resist the adorableness of Sonata Dusk!<strong>


	29. The Carnival

**This chapter...is dedicated to the person...who wanted to see...an Aria and Rainbow Dash situation...**

**Sorry, I'm just...really freakin' tired...**

**It's 1:37 am...on a school night...**

**Also, right after I finished typing this about half an hour ago, I accidentally hit the wrong button, it didn't save, and I had to retype half the chapter...**

**I hope you realize...the things I do for you guys...and how much I love y'all who've been reviewing and supporting me...**

**So, without further ado...enjoy...**

***passes out***

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><p>Applejack and Sunset sat in the living room. Sunset was reading a book, and Applejack was resting a bit after doing some chores. They were both bored, but kind of thankful that they didn't have to deal with the two sires' bickering for the moment. Suddenly, Applejack's phone buzzed, and she took it from her pocket. Seconds later, Sunset's phone did the same. They both looked at their phones to see the same message from Pinkie Pie.<p>

"There's a carnival openin' today?"

"Leave it to Pinkie Pie to be the first to know about this."

"Yeah, ah never even heard of this."

"Well, wanna go?" Sunset asked.

"Ah don't see why ah wouldn't. Sounds like a great idea!" Applejack said, happy to do something with her friends to save her from boredom. She then squinted at her screen, reading the message text again. "Pinkie said that, if we're goin', we should meet her at her house at 6:30, and we'll all go together."

"Sounds good."

"Should we take our…uh…'other friends?'" Applejack asked unsurely.

"Of course. Why wouldn't we?"

"Well, it's jus'…" Applejack said, scratching the back of her head. "…ah have no doubt that Rainbow will go, and with her attitude towards the sirens…"

"Well, she'll just have to deal with it. If we're trying to show the sirens how great being with friends is, then why pass up such an opportunity?" Applejack sighed and hesitated before speaking.

"Yeah, okay." She finally said. Suddenly, they heard the sound of the front door opening. They watched as two sirens entered the living room, hand in hand. Once the two saw Sunset and Applejack, they immediately released each others' hands and acted completely nonchalant. Sunset raised an eyebrow at this but said nothing. "Hey, you two." Applejack greeted.

"Hey." Aria answered.

"Well, we got somethin' excitin' to tell ya." Sonata's eyes widened. "We're goin' to a carnival tonight." Sonata's gasp could be heard from anywhere in the house as she grabbed Aria's arm.

"A carnival?! We've never been to a carnival! I already know what you're going to say, Ari, but _please_ can we go?!"

"No."

"Ariaaaaaa~!"

"No." Applejack suddenly cleared her throat, causing the two sirens to look at her.

"Ah believe ah said that we're goin' to a carnival tonight. Anywhere in that statement did you hear an invitation? We're goin', and that's final. Understand?" She said with a smirk. Aria rolled her eyes.

"Yes, your _highness_..." Aria said, voice dripping with attitude. "What are you, my mother?" Sunset then sat up and walked over to her.

"Aria, can I speak with you for a moment?" The siren raised an eyebrow.

"Do I have a choice?"

"No, not really." Sunset said as she took Aria out of earshot of the other two. "Okay, look. I know you're not the most fun-loving person in the world, but can you at least _try_ to be friendly?"

"Why should I?"

"You know, the only reason we took you in is because we thought you could learn more about friendship, but if you're not willing...I guess there's no longer a reason to keep you here..." Sunset said, trying to hide her knowing smirk. She knew Aria wasn't stupid enough to choose living on the streets over what she was offering her.

"Ugh, fine..." Aria said, crossing her arms.

"_Thank_ you." Sunset said with a sigh. She then smiled. "Any when we go, make some friends. And try to get on Rainbow's good side. Show her you're actually trying, as much as you like to hide it." Aria just huffed boredly, letting Sunset's words go in one ear, and out the other.

Sonata and Applejack were both laughing slightly when Sunset and Aria rejoined them.

"What's so funny?" Sunset asked curiously.

"Oh, heheh..." Sonata giggled. "...I was just telling Applejack about the time me and Aria snuck seaweed in Adagio's food." Aria couldn't help but smirked at this, remembering that day. She chuckled a bit.

"Adagio was so mad." She said. Sunset smiled slightly, glad to see that, once again, they were doing something other than arguing.

"Well, AJ..." Sunset began. "...what time is it? How long 'til we meet Pinkie?" Applejack checked the time on her phone.

"It's 3:27. We got about three hours."

"What should we do until then?" Sunset asked. Applejack thought for a moment, then she perked up a bit.

"Hey, why don't we go early? We ain't got nuthin' better to do." Sunset looked at the two sirens.

"Yeah, sounds good." She said.

~o~O~o~

Pinkie Pie bounced up and down as she watched her clock, overly excited about the carnival. She was becoming impatient.

"Oooh..." She whined. "I should've told them to come over earlier..." She sat on her bed with a sigh.

_Ding-dong!_

Pinkie Pie looked up

"Huh?" She said, standing up and walking out of her room. She went downstairs and walked up to her front door. When she opened it, she was surprised to see four girls standing there. She gasped happily. "Oh, hi!" She said. She then moved out of the way so that they could enter her house. "Wait, why are you guys here? You weren't supposed to arrive for another couple hours!"

"We got bored and had nothing to do, so we thought we should just come over early. I hope that's alright." Sunset said. Pinkie Pie smiled brightly.

"Oh, of course it's okay! I was pretty bored too, so I'm glad you guys came! Even if they came, too." She said, motioning to the two sirens. She then gasped as she looked at them. "Oh my gosh, I so rude!" She said. "I never properly introduced myself! My name's Pinkamena Diane Pie, but you can just call me Pinkie Pie. Or just Pinkie. Whatever works for you!" she said, extending a hand to Sonata, who smiled just as brightly as the pink girl.

"Oh, hiya, Pinkie Pie! My name's Sonata Dusk!"

"Well, nice to meet ya properly, Sonata! You seem really nice! Wanna be friends?!" She asked.

"Sure!" Sonata said as the two both squealed gleefully, and Pinkie Pie hugged the siren tightly. Aria put a hand to her now aching head.

"Oh, _god_...there's another Sonata..." She muttered. She then felt a slight tap on her shoulder. She looked and saw Sunset.

"Sonata sure seems to know how to make friends. Why can't _you_ ever be like that?" She asked with a smirk.

"Because I'm not a spaz." Sunset rolled her eyes. Then, before Aria knew it, Pinkie's hand was extended towards her. She looked at the girl's hand, then at her face.

"Hi, there! What's your name?!" She asked, too happy for Aria's liking. She was going to reply with some snide comment, but a glare from Sunset made her change her mind.

"Aria...Blaze..." She muttered, taking Pinkie's hand.

"Nice to meet ya, Aria! Wanna be friends?" She asked. Before Aria could reply with a rude statement, Sunset spoke up.

"O-oh course! Heheh...she'd _love_ to be your friend!" She then nudged Aria's arm, "Right, Aria?" The looked in Sunset's eyes told Aria that she had not choice but to agree.

"Uh...yeah, sure..." She said with an eye roll.

"Yay!" Pinkie said, going to hug her new friend. But that was one thing Aria was not going to stand. She held a hand out, keeping Pinkie from reaching her.

"But no hugs. I don't do hugs." Pinkie stopped.

"Oh, okay." She said with a shrug. "Different people like different stuff, I guess." Suddenly, Sonata spoke up.

"What're you talking about, Aria? Of course you do hugs!" She said as he threw herself at Aria, engulfing her in a tight embrace. Aria sighed and looked at her.

"Well, you're an exception." She said.

"Hey, Aria?" Pinkie said. Aria looked at her.

"What?"

"I think I have something you might like while we wait for the others to arrive."

"Oh, yeah? And what's that?" She asked. Pinkie motioned for them to follow. They followed her up to her room, and she pointed to a game station.

"I have some games I think you might like. You like some violence, right?" She asked.

"You could say that." Aria said. Pinkie went though her game stash until she pulled out one and showed it to Aria. It was some sort of fighting game. She put it into the game station and waited for the game screen to come up. She then handed the controller to Aria.

"Give it a try." She said with a smile. Aria slowly took the controller, not really having much experience with such things, and held it in her hands, looking at the various buttons.

"Ehhh..." She said in confusion. Pinkie giggled and took the controller from her.

"Here, like this." She said. After a couple minutes of showing her how to use the device, Aria smiled a bit and took the controller once again. Pinkie then held a second once to Sonata. "Wanna join her?" Sonata gasped happily and took the second one, sitting on the floor. Aria did the same, and the game started. As they were playing, Pinkie and Sunset watched them, smiling. Aria was way into it, glad that friendship came with violent video games. Sonata, however, was not as enthusiastic about it because aria kept beating her.

"How do you keep winning?! You must be cheating or something!" She said with a pout.

"If being awesome is a form of cheating, then yeah, I guess I am." She smirked. Sonata punched her arm, causing Aria to push her slightly. Then came the name-calling.

"You're not awesome, you're a meanie!"

"You're an idiot."

"You're dumb!"

"You're stupid."

"You're a grump!"

"You're a baby."

"You're a-"

"Okay, okay, that's enough, guys." Sunset said. Pinkie Pie giggled.

"You guys fight like an old couple." She said. This caused the two sirens to stop, and a light blush spread across both of their faces. But Sonata quickly snapped out of it when she noticed her and Aria's characters on the screen. She smirked and began pressing buttons on her controller, defeating Aria's.

"Hey!" Aria said, snapping out of it as well.

"Well, you shouldn't have been distracted!" Sonata said with a proud look on her face. Aria grinned evilly and glared at Sonata.

"Let's go again. We'll see who's smiling then!" She said.

"You're on!" Sonata replied, and they began playing once again as if they'd never fought.

"They sure change quickly." Pinkie Pie whispered to Sunset.

"Tell me about it." She whispered back. AS the two sirens played the video game, Sunset and Pinkie watched in amusement.

"They're not so bad." Pinkie suddenly said. Sunset turned to her.

"Huh?"

"I said they're not so bad. Aria's a bit grumpy, but other than that, she seems like a nice person." She said. "I don't know what Rainbow Dash was talking about." Sunset smiled at this, glad that at least _one_ of her friends could see past their evil deeds and Aria's nearly impenetrable shell.

"Yeah." She said simply.

~o~

Finally, after a long time, they heard a knocking at Pinkie's door.

"Oh, I bet it's the others! Come on!" Pinkie Pie said, dashing out of the room. Aria stood up and turned off the game, taking her and Sonata's controllers and putting them up.

"Ha! I beat you more times!" Sonata gloated. Aria scoffed as they left Pinkie's room and headed downstairs with Sunset.

"Pfft, you wish!" She said. When they got to the base of the stairs, they saw five girls standing in the doorway, including Pinkie.

"Hey, guys!" She said happily. "You ready to go?!"

"You bet, Pinkie!" Rainbow Dash said enthusiastically.

"Okay, then let's go!" Pinkie squealed, motioning for the other three to follow. Sunset and the sirens walked to the door, and exited the house with the others. As Pinkie closed her front door, she heard Rainbow snap.

"What the hell?! Are they going to be a part of _everything_ we do?!" Sunset glared at Rainbow.

"If you've got a problem, Rainbow, deal with it. Suck it up and just deal with it. I mean, how would you feel if you were in their position?" She asked. Rainbow scoffed.

"Well, first of all, I wouldn't _be_ in their position! I wouldn't do something as stupid as trying to take over the school!" Sunset crossed her arms and looked at Rainbow with an '_excuse_ me' look. Rainbow noticed what she said and chuckled nervously. "Uh, heheh...no offense..." Sunset raised an eyebrow.

"Uh huh." She said before beginning to walk.

"You should really learn ta curb yer tongue, Rainbow." Applejack said scornfully. As they all began to walk.

~o~

When they finally got to the carnival, they were stunned by its size, and all the attractions and rides. They walked through the place, taking in the sights.

"So..." Applejack started. "...what should we get on first?"

"That one!" Two voices said in unison. Aria and Rainbow Dash looked at each other as they saw that they were pointing at the same ride. They were pointing at a roller coaster, of course. And a rather fast on at that.

"Well, guess we're goin' on that one." Applejack said. Rainbow Dash and Aria gave each other a dirty look as they all began walking towards the ride. Sunset noticed this and shook her head. When they got up to the ride, they heard a squeak. All heads turned to Fluttershy, who was cowering.

"U-uh...I'm not really sure I wanna go on this ride..." She said.

"Oh, come now, Fluttershy. It can't be that bad." Rarity said reassuringly, but Fluttershy seemed unconvinced.

"Oh, it'll be okay, Fluttershy! I'll sit with you!" Fluttershy nodded halfheartedly and gulped as Pinkie took her arm. There was a lot of people getting on the ride, but no one dared sit up front.

"I call front!" Two voices said in unison once again. Rainbow Dash and Aria glared at each other. **(A/N: Everything they say at this part, they say at the same time)** "No, I called front! No, I did! Stop it!" Suddenly, Applejack came between them.

"Hey, now, stop fightin'. This argument is meaningless. Each seat can hold two people, so you_ both_ can sit up front."

"What, no way!" Rainbow said indignantly. She suddenly heard Aria laugh, and she looked over to see her getting in the seat.

"Well, good for me, then. Have fun sitting on the _not_ front!"

"Hey!" Rainbow said as she started trying to push Aria out of the seat. Applejack rolled her eyes and left to go find an empty seat, giving up on the two. After a couple minutes of pushing and arguing, a man walked up to them.

"Young lady," He said, looking at Rainbow Dash, "you need to have a seat in order for me to start the ride." Rainbow growled and was about to make a snide remark, but thought better of it as she angrily plopped down next to Aria with a huff. Soon, the ride started up. In just a few seconds, it started going fast, rounding corners, going down drops, and even looping once. It went around once, and was making another round when, suddenly, the sound of screeching filled the air. Then, the ride came to a compete stop...at a rather high point. A couple seconds later, a voice was heard over the loudspeaker.

"Due to some technical difficulties, the ride appears to have broken down. Don't worry, we're trying to find the cause of the problem as we speak. Until then, sit tight. I apologize for the inconvenience." After the announcement, groans and angry grumbling could be heard from the ride's passengers.

"Ugh, this is so stupid!" Aria complained.

"I know, right?!" Rainbow said. "Like, why don't they make sure the machine is working properly before they let people on?!"

"Exactl-wait...did you just...agree with me?" Aria asked, eyebrow raised. Rainbow's eyes widened.

"Uh...no! I didn't!" She said.

"Uh huh. Well, anyways, why would they even open this place if their stuff isn't working properly? Someone could die if something went wrong enough." Aria said. Rainbow sighed.

"I think all they care about is money. If you say 'Hey, we're having a carnival,' then people will come. The carnies get their money, and the people go on the rides. The carnies aren't the ones risking going on these crap rides, so why should they care if they're safe? As long as they're getting paid, they're good." Aria thought for a moment.

"Hmm...interesting viewpoint." She said.

"Really?" Rainbow asked. Aria nodded.

"Yes, but I see a slight fault with your theory." She concluded. Rainbow smirked.

"Oh, yeah? And what is that, Great and All-Knowing Siren?" Aria chuckled a bit at Rainbow's humor.

"Well, you say all the carnies care about is money, and that they don't care to make sure that they're machines are safe. But if someone were to get hurt on a ride or something, then they could get sued. If they care so much about money, then why would they take that risk?"

"Huh." Rainbow said thoughtfully. "That's very true." She said. Suddenly, she let out a long, drawn-out sigh and slid down a bit in her seat. "You know...I really didn't like you, and I honestly don't know why I...judged you without giving you a chance...'cause you're actually pretty okay." Rainbow admitted. Aria smirked and looked at Rainbow.

"Yeah, well...you're not so bad yourself..." Aria said. Afterwards, the two girls felt somewhat more comfortable talking to each other, and talk is what they did to pass time. Then, before they knew it, the ride was up and running again.

After the ride was over, Rainbow Dash and Aria shared with the others the understanding they'd come to, and it was a revelation for the others. The other girls began to warm up right away to the sirens now that they had gained Rainbow Dash's favor. And so, the group of girls went to just about every ride, game, and attraction, and just enjoyed each others' company. No one bickered with one another. They simply just had fun as a group. As friends.

* * *

><p><strong>*Talks in sleep* Hope you...enjoyed...<strong>


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